Over the Distant Horizon
by bipalium
Summary: ZoSan AU. Sanji works in the 'Baratie' as a sous-chef and one day a weird customer comes here. It appears that painful memories bind them. What will Sanji choose - to keep staying in dread or to overcome his past?
1. Everything in Its Right Place

Sanji had always loved such weather. The thing is, when you're smoking during a freeze, exhaled smoke mixes with your own icy breath and you feel like you're more satisfied; as if your lungs are filled completely. Furthermore, when you're looking at muted winter sunrays through clouds of smoke, they shimmer in a most beautiful way - rays tearing the smoke like they always tear _the ocean. _

Sanji was beholding the life painting of a winter morning, peacefully standing on the back entrance's stairs. It was one of his favorite places in the 'Baratie'. Here he could smoke in complete silence (it was always crowded and noisy in the restaurant, especially in the kitchen, so he valued moments of peace heartily). Also, from this point he could observe the entire landscape of the town – the restaurant was located on a small hill, and the winter morning scenery was Sanji's favorite delight.

The pure air was reminiscent of his hometown, which he had left as a child. So he didn't remember houses, roads or the view as a whole; notwithstanding, that really didn't matter that much. The most important things were not specific pictures, not even people. He used to have many playmates in his hometown, but now he couldn't even call their names to mind. There was a nice girl among them - Kaya was her name, if he remembered correctly; he wasn't sure. She had blond hair as Sanji himself had, and all the children would always make fun about it and call them the bride and the groom. Sanji chuckled softly at this memory.

Now the pure cool air reminded him of his hometown not because of the similar scenery. It was more about his _emotions_. Sanji was looking at this town, illuminated with the morning sun, and some inexplicable feelings grasped his soul. It was a warm feeling, as if he returned home, as if he _was home_.But this sudden joy was partially filled with bitter fragments of nostalgia. It wasn't too sorrowful, and Sanji was still full of high spirit, but light melancholy overflowed his heart for a long moment of a deep intense drag.

"Sanji," His thoughts were interrupted by a pleasant voice.

"What is it, Violet?" He asked softly, turning his face to the possessor of this voice. It was Violet, a new waitress of the 'Baratie'. She was wearing only a uniform and shivered from cold air. Sanji took off his jacket and gently put it on her shoulders.

"Zeff is calling for you. He said that your break is taking too long; we've opened only an hour ago after all."

"My dear Violet, you're so polite." He smiled quietly. "I believe in reality he'd been muttering dozens of curses, but you passed it on so carefully."

Violet sighed a bit exasperatedly. She was a really nice young woman, and Sanji adored her a lot. She may have behaved a little rough sometimes, but it fit her and she still was hospitable and sweet with their customers.

"Let's go in already, it's so freezing here. Aren't you cold?"

"No, I'm alright. You can go, dear, I'll be right back." He exhaled slowly.

Violet nodded her pretty head and disappeared behind the back entrance's door.

Sanji took another deep long drag. _And yet…_ He threw one last glance to the morning town. Snow enveloped everything around, and cold sun glittered on it with dazzling flashes. It was just another wintry morning. Nothing special at all. But Sanji felt really special. To enjoy every moment of life became his major rule after _those events_. He inhaled one last drag of his cigarette, threw away the butt and turned to the entrance door. _Beautiful morning._ But he still had some work to do.

As soon as he stepped inside, thundering ruckus captured his ears. Of course it wasn't all customers' noise – there wasn't a large amount of them at nine o'clock in the morning. The ones who could ruin every peaceful moment were 'Baratie' chefs themselves. The staff consisted almost entirely of men, except for a few female head chef's name was Zeff, and he was always acting like Sanji was still a baby, despite the fact that Sanji was a sous-chef. Safe to say, he never paid much attention to the old man's attacks because he knew Zeff was really soft-hearted in his soul, so usually Sanji just kept up the old man's game to cheer him up in this weird kind of way.

He reached the kitchen with quick steps and opened the door.

"Hey Sanji, stop having such long breaks already!" Patty grumbled. He was one of the eldest chefs in 'Baratie' and worked here for as long as Sanji could remember.

"I was absent just dozen minutes! And cut your teaching tone already!" Sanji shouted across the kitchen while putting his apron on.

"Shut up, eggplant." Zeff's sharp voice interrupted. He was slicing meat, boiling potatoes, stewing ragout and baking bread dough at the same time. Sanji was really in awe of his high skill, but never said it out loud. "Just get to work already."

Sanji came to the counter and took a knife. Slicing ingredients for meals was some sort of a _meditation_ for him. Even since his adolescence he had always felt relaxed in the kitchen. He moved a huge bowl with vegetables closer and took a carrot. He always preferred to cut carrots instead of rubbing them on the grater like chefs did in many other restaurants. It was obvious that the flavor would be more intense if you cut it, and if you rub it, the juice would be lost. Sanji was concentrated on slicing when Violet's voice interrupted him for the second time that day.

"Blackleg," she was always calling him by his surname when a large amount of people surrounded them. "I have a problem on the second floor."

The 'Baratie' consisted of two floors. On the first floor the main hall was positioned. It was almost always overcrowded, especially in the evenings. Customers often threw their parties there. The main entrance and the wall along it were made of a solid piece of glass, so customers could enjoy the full scenery of the town.

The second floor was the best for this purpose: in addition to the pleasant view it provided sections with individual tables lengthwise the transparent wall. Each table on the second floor was separated from the others by baffles; thereby it was an excellent place to drink morning coffee and enjoy the outside nature while being lost deep in thought. Sanji loved sitting here during his lunch breaks when the restaurant was less crowded.

Suchwise Sanji was unpleasantly surprised with Violet's words. What on earth could cause troubles in such a quiet place?

"What's the matter?" The man tried to keep calm, but he could already feel the familiar burning sensation in his legs.

"How should I put it…" Violet spoke in a whisper, so she would not attract the attention of other chefs.

"Just say it directly. Rude customer?"

"Hm, maybe something like that…" She hesitated. "There is a… weirdo."

"A weirdo?" Sanji raised his curly brow.

"Yes. He's looking really suspicious."

"Like what?"

"Like…" Violet bit her lip. "He has… weapon."

"Weapon?!" Sanji gasped, but instantly lowered his voice. "How did he pass through the security at the first place?"

"Well…" She sighed heavily. "I've asked Pell the same thing."

"And?" Sanji felt a vein pulsing in his forehead.

"He answered that when he had been trying to stop this man, he said that it's a collectible weapon. He held it in a suitcase as well."

"Okay, let's pretend it's a collectible." Sanji sighed with relief, though he still couldn't get rid of his doubts. "That's the entire problem?"

"No. He said he had a fly in his coffee and asked to call the sous-chef."

Sanji scratched his head in confusion. He hated it when customers were unpleased with service, but he hated cavils about the accuracy of the orders and the dishes condition even more. Food was food, and Sanji hated fastidious people most of all. But still, even if he discarded all these reasons, it wasn't the work of a sous-chef.

"Why didn't he call a manager?"

"I don't know." Violet shrugged slightly. "I said a similar thing to him and he replied that he needed to talk namely with sous-chef."

"Well then…" Sanji stretched his neck with a vertebra click. "If he so desperately wishes his ass to be kicked, here I come."

"Sanji, don't overdo it please!" She hissed.

Sanji nodded, smiling at her charmingly, and turned to leave the kitchen.

"Old man, I'm going on a break!" He shouted to Zeff.

"Damn, again?!"

"Yep!"

Zeff snarled bunch of harsh curses to Sanji's side.

"Haha, try not to explode!" He chuckled in response, barely having time to dodge the knife the old man threw at him. Violet's eyes widened with fright. "Don't worry, dear, he is just kidding!"

"Oh, just kidding… I don't think it's funny." She frowned.

"Take it easy. You'll get used to it soon."

Sanji moved across the main hall heading to the stairs. He wondered what this 'weirdo' could need from a sous-chef at all. Sanji rarely met 'Baratie' customers in person since he was working in the kitchen all the time. Could it be his acquaintance by any chance? Sanji doubted it; he didn't have any friends who could just come to the restaurant and call for him in such a rude way.

He stepped into the second floor area, ready to beat the shit out of this fucker, when suddenly he froze on the spot. The 'weirdo' was sitting at the table closest to the stairs and Sanji met his gaze instantly. The man stood up. He was wearing a leather jacket despite the fact it was frosty outside, but it wasn't the most suspicious thing about him. The man's hair was _green. _Sanji couldn't believe his eyes. All his confidence escaped now and for a second he couldn't move a single finger. _The memories _filled his mind in a flash. Bitter, sorrowful, tragic memories. Sanji swallowed, feeling his back covering with cold sweat.

"It's been a while, _Cook._" The green haired man smirked.

Sanji collected all his strength in his legs and jumped forward. Of course his hit was blocked instantly and sharply. Blocked with two crossed katanas still in their scabbards.

"Two years, _Marimo_."

The man grinned, weakening his grip and withdrawing the swords. Sanji slowed his breathing, set his overstrung foot back to the floor and lit up a cigarette. Both men were silent for a couple of seconds that were lasting forever, both staring deep into one another's eyes. Sanji exhaled and smiled widely_. _

"Zoro!" He threw his arms around other man's neck. The greenhead clutched the chef in a firm embrace and burst out laughing cheerfully.

"For a moment I thought you didn't recognize me." He said softly.

"Damn it, Violet said that some fucker had been yammering about a shitty fly in his coffee! I was going to smash your head!" He eased out of the embrace and looked at Zoro's face. "Man, you've not even changed!"

"But you have." Zoro smiled at him. "What's with that shitty ponytail you have?" He touched Sanji's hair with a curious expression on his face.

"Don't you like it? Nah, whatever. I'm just lazy to go to the barber's."

"Take a seat." Zoro sat on a sofa, waving his hand beside him.

Sanji took a seat near Zoro, crossing his legs and lighting another cigarette.

"Nice place." The green haired man said. "I'd never thought it would be so comfortable here when you were talking about your restaurant."

"It's not mine; it's all my old man's merit. So, those are your 'collectible' swords?" Sanji grinned.

"Man, if I said they were real I would never pass through the security." Zoro explained with a contented smile.

Sanji's grin weakened. He exhaled slowly, feeling his hands trembling slightly. The initial happiness gradually began to evaporate.

"You know, I'm working now. I can't sit here babbling with your stupid ass all day long."

"I know." Zoro took a sip of his coffee. Of course there wasn't any sign of a fly in his cup. "But I returned to the town just now, so I wanted to see you."

Sanji smiled wistfully without looking into the man's eyes. Wrenching anxiety was building in his soul more and more with every new drag. This man… _That accident… _All was connected so tightly, and only looking at Zoro now began to awaken not the best memories in Sanji's mind. If it was so simple, Sanji would just get away now. But the problem was _he couldn't do it_ even if he wanted. Zoro's eyes… He hadn't seen them for whole two years. Two years… Sanji _dreamed_ million times about meeting him again. To see his soft smile, to hear his soothing voice, to fight with him. And of course Sanji had given up already; it was pointless to hope for this to happen since so much time had passed.

The chef was torn between disturbing thoughts – was it a _dream_ coming true, or a _nightmare_?

"I'm sorry, but I'm busy now." The blonde crushed the cigarette butt over an ashtray. "Also… Zoro…" He hesitated, trying to collect his thoughts and words. "I'm not sure… I just… It's all of a sudden."

Zoro sighed deeply and frowned.

"Cook, of course I rushed here first of all not only to see your stupid phiz." He pondered, looking outside through the glass wall. "I need to talk to you."

"Ha, of course you need." Sanji frowned almost painfully and stood up. "But later."

He turned away to leave, and the last thing he heard was Zoro's words:

"I'll wait for you near the main entrance tonight."

* * *

**A/N:**

Greetings, readers! Here is a new story. At first I was sure it would be one-shot, but my idea slightly changed in a process of work. I will update once a week or maybe less often. Big thanks to my dear **xpiester333x **for being my beta, your help is indispensable for me!

I hope you enjoyed and thank you very much for reading!


	2. Fix the Sky a Little

Zoro was riding to his cousin's apartment. Morning breeze was enveloping his body with pleasant coolness, though he didn't feel cold. He was focused on the frosty road, but his mind he was lost deep in thoughts. _In memories. _The cook hasn't changed at all. Maybe his hair had grown, and his face no longer looked so gaunt and worn-out, but _his eyes _were still the same. His gaze… Deep gaze of the blue eyes, deeper than _the ocean… _Sanji was still his familiar Sanji. But nevertheless, a different one.

Zoro observed the town's landscape out of the corner of his eye. The cottages near the road were snow-covered and their fuzzy veil was softly illuminated by the sunrays. Nothing unusual. And of course Zoro would not pay any attention to that view under other circumstances. But he felt strange inspiration in his soul; something was rising inside his heart. He felt frosty air on his face under the helmet, but he still was warm. What an interesting sensation.

He turned his bike out of the road and parked near the small apartments block. There were two floors and his cousin used to live on the second (the green haired man hoped that she hadn't moved away during his absence). Zoro removed his helmet and was stone-still for a couple of minutes. The truth is, when he returned after _that accident _two years ago he'd hardly said a single word to her. She had been shouting curses, crying… But Zoro just couldn't explain anything to her, that time he desperately needed to move on. So he just grabbed his swords and went out, leaving his poor cousin in a shocked and abandoned condition. It's not like he never blamed himself for such a cruel action, but things were too complicated that time. So Zoro took a deep breath, stood up to heading to the building's stairs, picking up the case with his swords. He got up to the second floor. The terrace was littered with all sorts of garbage and rubbish that caused him to question again if she still lived here. But on the other hand his cousin was always far from tidy, so Zoro threw his doubts away and knocked on the door with plaque '13'.

After several anxious moments of waiting the door opened and the girl appeared. She was quite short, her ruffled long hair was dyed a bright pink. The girl was wearing a beige sweater that barely covered her panties. Her face was sleepy as like she was woken by Zoro's sudden visit, but the next moment she saw him and her already big eyes widened in dismay.

"Zoro…" She looked completely overwhelmed.

"Hi, Perona." He said simply.

The girl froze for a couple of seconds and then Zoro felt sharp slap on his cheek. Perona lowered her red palm, panting. It seemed the hit caused more hurt to her instead of Zoro. And then she burst out crying.

"You… damn… fucker…" She whispered intermittently, kneeling down. The green haired man realized she could faint and caught her on the wing.

"Calm down." He said softly, trying to wipe her tears, but Perona weakly rejected his hand. "Please, don't cry, you're scaring me."

"I am scaring you? Ha… Ha-ha!" Suddenly she chuckled through the tears. She sighed deeply and smiled. "You're a damn beast, nothing could scare you."

Zoro smiled at her and slightly pressed her to his chest. Perona was very emotional, sometimes even hysterical; so he knew for sure that after this outburst she was feeling better.

"May I come in?" He asked. Perona stood up, still weak in her legs, and made a serious expression.

"Only if you're finally going to explain yourself."

Zoro entered the apartment, closing the door after himself. Perona's place was small and a full mess as always, things were scattered everywhere; her bed was still uncovered and creasy. Suchwise Zoro figured he was right that he woken her. Also it was rather dark in the room; the window was covered with louvers and the sunrays infiltrated there weakly, highlighting rising clouds of dust.

"I've returned only an hour ago, can I use your bath?"

"Nope!" She exclaimed irritably. "Coffee first."

"Don't you mind that I stink?"

"Whatever." Perona stood near the counter and switched on a coffee machine. The kitchen was settled right in the living room – the only room in her apartment.

Zoro took off his jacket and threw it to the bed.

"You can lie down if you want." She took out two cups from the cupboard. "But don't you dare to fall asleep before you talk!"

"As you wish." Zoro leaned back with his hands behind his head.

"So start talking already."

Perona was standing with her back to Zoro, so he couldn't see her gloomy gaze. She could pretend she was happy too see him after so long, and it was halfway true. But at the same time she was worrying for her cousin every day since he left, or to be more precise since _the day he boarded that plane. _So that's why her joy was mixed with devastation and offense against Zoro.

"You know about the crash already." Zoro's voice broke for a second and he cleared his throat.

"Yes." She answered with neutral tone. "I saw on news that's your flight crashed."

Perona was strongly forcing herself not to cry again because of the memory of that day, but she knew Zoro hated her tears, so she was trying to resist with all her might.

"So, we suffered a crash." The green haired man said quietly. "Many people died, but as you see I'm okay."

"Ha, you're okay…" Perona felt her anger growing, and the spoon in her shaking hand was knocking loudly against the cup.

"The plain crashed and we were stuck on a desert island. That was a small island, so the rescue aircraft and ships just weren't able to notice us for a long time. They came after us only after several months."

Perona raised a cup of coffee to Zoro, trying to avoid his gaze.

"And then? When you came here and said you needed to take your stupid swords. Where did you go then?"

"I went to train to my home village in mountains."

"Two years?"

"Two years."

Zoro took a sip of coffee and pleasant warmness overflowed his body. He wanted to fall asleep immediately and cut this pointless conversation. He could hardly explain to her what happened properly. He just couldn't find the right words to describe it. It was an experience that a normal person couldn't simply understand.

"You said 'we' many times." Perona sat down in a shabby armchair. "Were there many other people who survived?"

"Yes, there were." Zoro closed his eyes wistfully. "But not many really."

"And what happened to them?" She still was frowned, but slight interest could be heard in her voice.

"Honestly… I don't know. Or rather, I hadn't known until today."

"Oh? Did you find them?"

"Only one man." Zoro smiled weakly. "But I hope the rest of those guys are safe too."

Perona sighed in relief. Now she had noticed that Zoro was very calm and relaxed, and his smile brought her some confidence. And his gaze… His gaze just told her more than his words.

"Hey, little bro." Perona has always called him her 'little bro' despite the fact he was older. "I was worried as fuck about you, you know."

"Are you satisfied now?" He chuckled.

"Just a bit." Perona stuck out her tongue and giggled. "So, stinky pig, now you really should go take a bath."

"Nah, it was you who said you don't mind it." Zoro reluctantly stood up from the bed and reached his arms out. "Give me a towel."

"You'll find one in there." Perona waved her hand to the bathroom door. "The white one, the pink is mine."

Zoro nodded and disappeared behind the door. He opened the tap, listening to the sound of water and shut his eyes tightly. Two years… Two years he thought about how he would meet Sanji again. Look into his deep blue eyes again. Hold his warm hand again. Clench cook's slim waist in his arms again. Stroke his golden hair again. But… He has noticed that something wasn't right. The cook was probably happy to see him again, his _soft smile _told him so. But there were other emotions, cold and bitter. Zoro understood perfectly that the circumstances under which they had met could leave an indelible mark of dread and pain in Sanji's heart. And the swordsman couldn't avoid that he wasn't able to get rid of all the sorrowful parts of their meeting. Safe to say he was overcoming his own hurt during past two years. And the conclusion he has reached was an answer to this complicated question. Their first meeting… Could it be fate? The memories overflowed his mind.

* * *

"Hey you, what the heck?!"

The blond man shouted crossly at Zoro, brushing off his foppish suit. Zoro rolled his eyes and frowned, annoyed that he wasted his coffee.

"It's your fault for running in the waiting area."

"You jerk!" Suddenly the blond stranger grabbed him by the collar; Zoro tensed, ready to pounce. "It was my new suit! It cost me a large sum!"

"Not my problem." Zoro rudely pushed him away. "Get the fuck off of me."

"You poured your shitty coffee on me!" The other man yelled. "And now you're saying it's not your problem! I'll kick your damn ass!"

The green haired man regretted that he couldn't bring his swords with him since weapons were forbidden in the airports and all the more so in planes.

"Gentlemen, please calm down!" The staff girl hissed at them. "Otherwise I'll call the security!"

The blonde showed his middle finger to Zoro and moved away, muttering curses. Zoro frowned and headed to the coffee machine to refill his paper cup – still half an hour remained before the flight. He sat down to the chair and took a sip. What a damn fucker. Under other circumstances he would definitely beat all the shit out of this cocky bastard.

He looked at his wristwatch. What a stupid idea it was to invite him to the wedding. Zoro hated such idiotic activities, but Vivi was adamant. _"Zoro, it's my wedding, you can't refuse! And Kohza will be upset as well, we're friends after all!"_ She told to him on the phone. Vivi and Kohza were Zoro's college-mates, but he couldn't say they were really close. Kohza went with Zoro to his kendo sessions couple of times, but he didn't seem very interested and so he dropped. Vivi was a clever and beautiful girl, but Zoro hadn't tried to speak with her before he became acquainted with her fiancée – he had heard she was from rich and influential family. Zoro couldn't even recollect how they became 'friends' – often their 'friendship' meant that they were throwing drunken parties in Vivi's mansion. But sometimes Zoro really enjoyed Vivi's company. Her groom was always too serious and taciturn, but Vivi in her turn was so cheerful and friendly, so at first Zoro behaved carefully around her, thinking she just pretended to be so polite. But it appeared that this girl was very full-hearted and merry, even a wild child, so he felt rather comfortable in her company.

And now he was waiting for the flight and going to this stupid wedding. Zoro sighed heavily. Well, at least he could get drunk there and have some fun, right? He took the last sip of coffee and threw away the empty cup, when the speaker announced his flight was ready. Zoro stood up picking up his luggage – he had only one backpack with him.

He has proceeded through all the checkpoints and reached the aircraft cabin, heading to his seat. And what was his disillusion when he saw a certain blonde sitting next to his place. The man hasn't noticed Zoro yet, he was smoking with his eyes shut. Zoro sighed – it was a big mistake to take a ticket in the smoking cabin, but he had no other choice since Vivi had called him only few days ago and all other tickets were already sold out.

The green haired man put his backpack in the overhead compartment, sat down and fixed his gaze to the newspaper. Unfortunately it was unbelievably boring and contained only financial summaries. _"At least I can fall asleep"_ He thought.

"Crap, you're that coffee-fucker! The moss-head!" Finally the blond man noticed Zoro. It now drew Zoro's attention that this man had really strange eyebrows. They were swirly, and one of them was visible only when his forelock was drawing aside during man's movements. And here was another odd thing – his second brow was curled in the opposite direction.

"Shut up, it's just a damn three-hour flight. I'm not happy with this seat either. And," Zoro raised an eyebrow, "what the hell with this 'moss-head' moniker?!"

"Idiot, that's because your hair is green!" The blonde burst out laughing. His laugh was so easy-going and cheerful, that Zoro caught himself on the fact that he was smiling as well. "I'm sorry for my rude attitude last time. You know, it was an expensive suit, so, um…" The man hesitated for couple of seconds. "Name's Sanji Blackleg."

He raised his hand to Zoro. The green haired man shook it, though he was still suspicious.

"Hey, man, don't be so serious!" Sanji smiled light-heartedly. "What's your name?"

"Zoro Roronoa." He answered.

"Haha, your name as stupid as your hair!" The blonde laughed again.

"Yours isn't any less stupid. And cut this crap already, or I'll beat your phiz right now." Zoro grinned.

They were chatting for a couple of minutes before the speaker announced the takeoff. Zoro noticed out of the corner of his eye that Sanji turn pale. His hands were shaking a bit while he lit up his cigarette.

"Are you afraid of flights?" The green haired man asked.

"No! I'm not afraid!" The blonde said with higher tone and exhaled nervously.

"I see. Your hands are shaking."

Sanji frowned, avoiding other man's gaze.

"Maybe just a bit." He forced the words through his clenched teeth. "But not the flight actually, it's more about takeoff itself."

"Yep, it's not the most pleasant thing." Zoro nodded. "But you can at least overcome your distaste for this one."

"How?" Sanji glanced at him with one visible eye still fussily, but now distracted by his words.

"It's simple. Just close your eyes and starting to breath deeply."

Both men felt the plane already lift off of the ground. A raising panic reflected in Sanji's gaze.

"Calm down. Shut your eyes. Now."

Sanji obeyed unquestioningly and leaned down at his seat.

"Deeeeep breath." Zoro commanded. He almost chuckled at Sanji, who gripped the armrests so tightly that his fingernails became white. "Deep inhale. Sloooow exhale. Imagine you're enjoying your morning cigarette with your full lungs."

"Wow, what a sudden comparison."

"Tss. Relax. Deep inhale."

Sanji inhaled deeply, so Zoro heard the air move down his throat.

"Slow. Exhale."

Sanji released his breath.

"Now imagine, mmm… What do you like most of all?"

"Sex." The blonde blurted without any doubt.

"I meant something more relaxing. It's a meditation, idiot. You can't think about sex."

"But I do all the time."

Zoro was caught out off guard with this sudden confession, but he pretended it wasn't a big deal.

"Maybe you like rain? Or snow? Blue sky or some similar shit."

"I love _the ocean_." Sanji said.

"Good, then imagine the ocean." Zoro scratched his neck. The takeoff was already passed, but it seemed the blond man still hasn't noticed it. "The cool waves are touching your feet. You feel the sand covering your toes. The breeze is fanning your hair. You look at the blue sky covered in airy clouds. The sunrays are illuminating your pale skin. You are raising your hands and slowly opening your eyes."

"Man, you're a fucking poet." Sanji chuckled softly and opened his eyes. He had a sleepy look. "Is the takeoff over?"

"Yes. Are you feeling better?" Zoro asked with grin.

"Definitely better. What was that again? Damn good shit."

"Meditation. A good thing when you need to collect your thoughts or calm down."

"I'll remember it, very useful method."

Sanji grinned and looked to the window, lighting up his cigarette.

"You know, Zoro…" He uttered wistfully. "The sky and the ocean are very similar, don't you think?" Enthusiasm was shining in his blue eye.

"They're both blue. But the sky is made of air and the ocean of water."

Sanji laughed.

"Sky is made of air, man, what a stupid description."

"But that's true."

"It just sounds like you're five."

Zoro felt a little confused.

"Man, you like to be rude as I see."

"Oh, was I rude again?" Sanji turned to Zoro with a surprised glance. "Maybe that's because it's comfortable to speak with you. Do you like to speak with strangers in planes and tell them your secrets, dreams and ideas?"

"Why?" Zoro winced.

"I don't know, it can be funny sometimes. Also somehow I can trust a stranger." He smiled softly and reflectively. "Do you think it's stupid?"

"Of course. The secrets are secrets, you can't just babble about them to the first comer."

"What about dreams?" Now Sanji looked serious and even a bit disappointed. "Do you have a dream, five years old moss-head?" He added more playfully.

"I have." Zoro replied. "Every person has."

"Nope." Sanji shook his head in disagreement, lighting another cigarette. "I'm speaking about _the _dream. The biggest dream of your life."

Zoro pondered with his eyebrow raised. He had that dream, yes. But he wasn't sure if he could say it to a complete stranger. Even if it was such an _interesting stranger. _

All of a sudden their conversation was interrupted with a sharp voice from the speaker.

"_ATTENTION PLEASE, WE ARE ENTERING A TURBULENCE ZONE."_

* * *

**A/N:**

Greetings, my dear readers. I've never thought this story could reach so many followers after a first chapter. Thank you very much! Also my plan for it has changed plenty of times, I don't even sure how many chapters will be here, but does it really matter? :) Big thanks for my lovely xpiester333x for a huge help with correction! I hope you all enjoyed and thank you very much for reading!


	3. Harmonium

Sanji returned to the kitchen, feeling his head was steadily starting to ache. Foggy and dizzy, he went back to cooking, though his mind was completely far away from the work.

"What happened?" Patty bent down to him. "Violet looked suspicious."

The blonde was silent for a couple of seconds; he simply hadn't understood that he was being spoken to.

"What did you say?" He asked with quiet and fitful tone.

Patty rolled his eyes and put down his knife.

"Man, you look like you're traveling far away in your own dreams. You should concentrate – you are slicing this piece already for the third time."

"Oh, crap." Sanji looked carefully – the piece of fish was sliced into tiny pieces, too small for the ordered salad. "Thanks Patty."

The older chef sighed, going back to his work.

"You should take a day off, I tell you."

"Maybe you're right." Sanji answered wistfully, picking up another fish.

It was still morning and Sanji already wasn't able to focus. The green haired man had filled his thoughts completely from now on. He said he would be waiting for Sanji afterhours, thus Sanji was absolutely distracted. To put it simply, he didn't know what to do. Even the idea to flee from work early today came to his mind. And of course he would choose this plan if he hadn't had such a strong desire to see Zoro again. What irony – Sanji wanted to meet him again so desperately during these past two years, and now, when the chance was finally presented to him and all that he had to do was just wait until the evening, the panic seized his mind. The chef always had known that it was nobody's fault they were parted, moreover under those circumstances the most urgent priority was just to escape from that island, and that was something that wasn't in question. However Sanji, in some sense, even regretted their sudden rescue back then. It was such a complicated issue, that was why Sanji couldn't overcome all of his doubts through the last two years. In his mind he knew perfectly well - it was a lucky strike of fortune and he must be grateful to have been saved, but his feelings were telling him another story. He felt somewhat offended, even betrayed. Sanji understood it was total nonsense and he should just be happy that he survived and lived on… Still he couldn't.

"Shrimp salad, beefsteak, spaghetti!" Violet shouted to several chefs in different parts of the kitchen. After handing out the orders she approached Sanji, who was staring at the piece of meat he was slicing automatically with a blank expression.

"Blackleg." She turned to him. "So, who was that man? Pell was ready to remove him when he attacked you, but I stopped him."

"Why?" Sanji asked with no expression on his face.

"Em…" Violet looked away, though there was no need for her to hide her gaze – Sanji wasn't looking at her either. "I noticed you were very excited to speak to him."

"Was I?" Finally he took his eyes away from meat and glanced to the waitress.

"Yes." She smiled softly. "You looked so happy when you… hugged him. Is he friend of yours?"

"Sort of." He answered hesitantly. "I haven't seen him for a long time."

"Oh, then it's great!" Violet chuckled. "I like to meet old friends, so many memories related to them."

"Memories, you say…" Sanji bit his lower lip. This girl had no idea what her words meant to him. The peaceful, carefree life that she lived was impossible for Sanji after that accident. Sometimes he wished he had never got in that crash and continued to live with innocent and naïve childish mind; it would give him a chance to more freely communicate with people. But that was no longer possible. No need to explain that Sanji lost the ability to understand his friends; safe to say he lost all his old relationships after returning from the island. It was irritating to hear all these people babbling about their common duties and ridiculous private problems, which were so unimportant in the vision of his new third eye. The same thing goes for Violet. She was a nice girl; a girl for which Sanji surely would have fallen for two and half years ago; _former Sanji, _Sanji who was _already dead. _

"Oh, Sanji, I wanted to ask you…" Violet leaned closer to him, speaking right into his ear. "Mmm, do you mind… I mean… What are you doing tonight?"

Sanji stopped slicing for a moment and Zoro's low voice echoed in his mind:

_I'll wait for you near the main entrance tonight._

This was a challenge of fate. A chance was given to him, his _last chance. _Sanji closed his eyes wistfully, trying to stay calm. There were two possible scenarios, and the result of his choice could predetermine everything. He opened his deep blue eyes and smiled at the blushing waitress softly.

"_I haven't decided yet."_

"Okay, I see." She sighed lightly with a hesitant gaze, biting her nail. "Then can I ask you again later?"

"Sure."

"I should be getting back to work." She chuckled nervously and left in a flash.

Sanji took a deep breath. He could go with Violet wherever she wanted. Sure, he could.

_ He ended his workday, approached the young waitress and they both left, heading to the bar. Violet was smiling and laughing all night, telling him stories about how her college mates used to call her The Big V because of her breasts size and then they all got married, and only Violet remains single. Then she asked Sanji to take her to home, on the way suddenly she burst out crying, whispering that she never has been loved and feels so lonely. Sanji embraced her, stroking her hair and said quietly: "I will love you, you won't be lonely anymore". They kissed; at that same moment heavy rain started and they ran to her apartment, where they had passionate sex till the morning. After couple of years they had married, Violet announced she was pregnant, Sanji was so happy to hear it that even a single manly tear escaped from his eye; her friends throw a party and everybody congratulated the Blacklegs on the new addition to their family. The girl was named Marie; the three of them moved to the larger cottage, Violet became private piano teacher, Marie grew up and entered university. Fifty years old Sanji was reading the newspaper, sitting in his usual large armchair, Marie returned from her classes and said: "Dad, today I had a class about sea-creatures, it was so interesting! Maybe I should read more books about the sea and the ocean". THE OCEAN. THE OCEAN. THE OCEAN. – clanged in his ears. Violet - she was wearing a long silk dress and many rings on her fingers; they all looked so out of place on this elderly woman - came down from the second floor, put her flabby arms around Sanji's shoulders and asked: "So, Blackleg. Was it a happy life for you? Are you satisfied? And most importantly – have you loved me as you promised?"_

Sanji opened his eyes widely; cold sweat was dripping down his spine. He shook his head, trying to get rid of the mental image. It was literally a waking nightmare. He looked around the kitchen; everybody was deep in their duties, shouts and noise sounded from every direction. Sanji looked down at his hands – they were shaking violently. And then he decided.

The blond chef moved away from the counter, heading to the owner, Zeff. The old man was yelling at one of his subordinates as always. Sanji cleared his throat and uttered:

"Dad, give me a day-off."

Zeff turned to Sanji, his eyes widened in surprise. He sharply gestured to the chef he was reprimanding, implying he should leave the two of them alone for now.

"What happened?" He asked unexpectedly softly, the concern was evident in his tone.

"I'm tired." Sanji said, looking straight into Zeff's eyes. The old man raised an eyebrow.

"You're lying, eggplant. I know you never would ask for a day off just because you're tired. Tell me what happened."

Sanji sighed in irritation.

"I can't explain, but it's important. I'll work extra hours tomorrow, just let me go."

Zeff frowned, putting his fingers to his temples.

"Please." Sanji added softly.

"Okay then." Zeff tried to pretend he was angry, but Sanji clearly noticed the worry in his eyes. "Get the fuck out of here, but tomorrow you'll work so hard and long that you'll collapse."

"Thanks, dad." Sanji smiled at him, but Zeff only hissed and waved his hand.

Not wasting any time, Sanji left the kitchen, heading to the staff room. As soon as he opened the door, his own jacket caught his eye. He already forgot that he gave it to Violet earlier that morning; the jacket was thrown messily on the bench. Sanji picked it up and put it on; the fragrance of Violet's perfume made him sneeze; the odor was too sweet and pungent for his taste, so that he decided to wash the jacket as soon as he got home. Then Sanji took his coat from his locker, pulled it on and left the room. He walked across the main hall to the door; there were plenty of customers by then, and Sanji felt out of place in this general atmosphere of fun.

"Hey Sanji, are you leaving already?"

Pell was standing near the entrance as always wearing sunglasses and a formal suit. Sanji noticed his surprised tone.

"Yes, I took time off."

"Some urgent matter?" Pell wondered.

"Exactly. See ya." Sanji waved his hand and left.

The afternoon sun mildly shined down on him, giving some weakened warmth to his body. The blonde took his wool hat out of his pocket and pulled it on while slowly walking to the bus stop. He lit up a cigarette. No, he wasn't escaping. The case still needed to be clarified. Was it fate or a coincidence? Sanji needed some strong evidence. He had always thought their being stuck on that island was sort of fortune's game, like they were being checked up for willpower and faith. But could it be that the game wasn't over yet? Sanji stood at the bus stop and grinned. He accepted the challenge. Again.

The bus arrived almost immediately; the blonde entered and sat down in a seat, putting in his headphones. With a button push the light jazz melody flowed through him; he looked out the window where the town's scenery started to move at slowly at first and then streaked by. Cottages covered in show, cars, shops and the people… Sanji closed his eyes looking at another picture – a picture from his memory of two and half years ago.

* * *

Sanji opened his eyes and blinked several times. The image was muted and unclear, he heard shouting voices as if they were from somewhere far away.

"Hey, you can't just walk around with such wounds!" A man's high voice sounded. "If sand gets inside they will fester!"

"I know, damn it!" The other voice was far lower and sounded familiar. "But we must look for everyone who's still alive! I don't believe we're the only survivors!"

Sanji squinted and opened his eyes as wide as he could. The picture became clearer now. It seemed he was lying on the sand; his clothes were wet and sticking to his body. Two men were arguing in front of him: the first one was Zoro, that green haired man who sat next to him in the plane.

Wait. The plane. Flashing memories swept through Sanji's mind: many people panicking, unbearable jolting, screams all over the cabin; Zoro's hand, which Sanji had clung like that would help. Zoro glanced at him, trying to stay confident, but the shade of fear was visible even in the strong man's eyes; he uttered quietly, squeezing Sanji's palm back: "Please relax. It will be over soon. Nothing will happen." Sanji nodded abruptly and shut his eyes tightly, feeling other man's palm was in a cold sweat: he didn't believe the words he said himself. And then – huge tremors, a blunt impact, pain all over his body and a blackout.

He tried to sit up and felt a sudden pain in his arm. Sanji hissed and the two men finally noticed him.

"Sanji!" Zoro dropped to his knees beside him; deep wrinkles of concern were all over his face, it seemed like he was ready to burst. "Are you alright?!"

"Yes…" Sanji rasped barely audible. His body felt enormously weak.

"Hell, you're alive, what a relief…" Zoro sighed heavily, putting his hand on Sanji's shoulder.

"He doesn't look good, he needs a first aid." The other man, or rather boy, leaned towards Sanji, staring at his face intently. "Are you guys friends?" He turned his face to Zoro.

"We were sitting next to each other on this goddamn plane." The green haired man explained. "But you're right, he definitely needs first aid, bring your kit here."

"Thank God I was able to catch my kit." The boy sighed, reaching for the box which was lying on a stone about a meter from them. "It's a miracle."

Sanji felt his strength leave him completely and he fell to the ground, still conscious.

"Are you sick? Something hurts?" Zoro gently touched his forehead. Sanji couldn't force the words out for some reason and only nodded weakly in reply. "Man, you probably have a fever." He stroked Sanji's hair, looking at him worryingly and yet smiling softly. "Don't worry, this guy will take care of you. His name is Tony and he's a doctor."

"I'm not a doctor yet." The boy interrupted. "I've only graduated the university…"

"It doesn't matter, you're able to heal and that's what important. You've helped the others as well."

Tony blushed and suddenly yelled:

"Idiot, your compliments don't make me happy! I just do what I have to do! And I'll repeat again – your wounds aren't deep and neither are they life-threatening, but I have to stitch them!"

Sanji lowered his gaze noticing Zoro was barefoot; both of his ankles had fresh cuts which were bleeding heavily. Sanji opened his mouth to try to speak, but only inarticulate sounds came out.

"What is it?" Zoro asked quietly.

Sanji cough strongly to clear his throat and attempted to speak again.

"Your… Ankles…"

Zoro looked down at the wounds.

"I know. Don't worry, the major priority is to treat you, then we'll think about this shit."

"Damn." Tony leaned above Sanji, holding something in his hands. "The gauze and bandages have gotten wet. Sanji was your name, am I right?" He smiled at the blond man. "Please tell me what hurts. Or at least point to it."

"Besides my whole damn body, my right arm." Sanji croaked.

"Okay." Tony gently grabbed his arm, lifting up the sleeve of his shirt. "Does this hurt?" He bent it at the elbow; Sanji felt a piercing pain and moaned. "I see." The boy released his arm and turned to Zoro. "His arm seems to be broken."

Sanji's eyes widened in despair. A broken arm was the worst thing that could happen to a chef.

"Calm down, Sanji!" The little doc noticed blonde's panic. "I'd say it's probably an internal fracture, because your bones can move properly and solid to touch. So we just need to fix your arm into the right position and it will repair itself in several weeks."

Sanji sighed in small relief, though still concerned. He would rather have broken his leg, nose, damn anything else, but not his arms and hands. This right arm could cost him his cooking skill.

"Zoro, can you bring a stick? It needs to be straight to fix the arm properly. And I need something to bandage the arm since my kit got wet."

Without a word Zoro took off his shirt and raised it to the doctor.

"Is this enough?"

"Emm… I think so, yes."

Both Sanji and Tony were staring shocked at the green haired man's bare chest, which was crossed with unbelievably long scar.

"What?" Zoro shrugged.

"N-nothing." Tony swallowed and turned back to Sanji with his eyes wide with fear. "Come back soon, you can't move too much with your ankles wounded."

Zoro nodded and disappeared from view.

Tony tore Zoro's shirt into smaller pieces to bind Sanji's arm. The blond man still felt dizzy and couldn't concentrate properly; he was on edge from fainting. And then he remembered what could always improve his state – smoking.

"Tony, where is my jacket?" He asked.

"Oh, it's here." The doctor nodded behind Sanji. "Zoro took it off to let you breathe freely."

"There was a pack of cigarettes and a lighter in the inside pocket. Can you please pass it to me?"

The little doc looked at Sanji with pitiful glance.

"Oh… I can, but I don't think it hasn't gotten wet…"

He grabbed the jacket and rummaged in pocket, then pulled out the certain items.

"Check the lighter." Sanji commanded.

Tony flipped it open and flicked the wheel. To his surprise, fire came out from the lighter.

"Oh my god!" Tony's eyes shined with happiness. "It's a magic lighter!"

"Of course." Sanji smiled. He was a bit surprised himself; though it was really high quality lighter and it wasn't broken after the several times Sanji had dropped it into the sink; it was almost unbelievable that it was working even after staying underwater.

"Sanji, it's incredible! This means we're safe, we have fire! Thank God!" A tear ran down the boy's cheek, he sniffled and grinned widely. "From now on this stupid island isn't a big problem anymore! Guys!" He shouted off to the side. "We have fire!"

"Really?!" The woman's voice sounded.

Sanji took the sealed pack – thanks to the plastic it was wet only to the corners, and the cigarettes remained dry. He pulled out one and lit it up, inhaling a deep drag, which filled his lungs with pleasurable bitter smoke. He exhaled all the smoke like it was entering the core of his being and instantly felt his blood stream warming his body. Sanji heard the rustle of steps on the sand moving in their direction, and a moment later he saw a group of people standing above him. There was a very pretty red haired girl, a long-nosed fellow with curly hair, and tall man in a suit with an afro; he also was wearing a pair of round lens sunglasses, though they seemed to have broken in the crash. The girl spoke first:

"Are you awake?" She asked Sanji. She looked frightened and had probably cried recently – her eyes were swollen. "I'm Nami, this guy with a long nose is Usopp, and this man is Brook."

Both men bowed to Sanji. Usopp looked scared as well, however it was noticeable he was trying to overcome it. The other man, Brook, looked oddly calm.

"Hi guys and what a beautiful lady." Sanji was finally able to sit up – it wasn't very comfortable to speak with people who were bending over him. "I'm Sanji."

"Are you alright, Sanji?" Nami asked with concern. She had plenty of bruises all over her body but Sanji hadn't noticed any serious wounds.

"Yes." He answered, exhaling the smoke. "I hope you are too, my sweet princess."

"Hey!" She frowned. "Don't you dare to flirt with me under such circumstances! We're stuck on this island after a plane crash, idiot!" She kicked him in the abdomen lightly. The hit wasn't strong, but Sanji instantly felt a wave of nausea welling up. He jumped up, barely having time to run out so the lady wouldn't see such a disgusting scene.

"You idiot, why did you hit him?!" Tony shouted at her. "He probably has a cerebral concussion like many of us, and you think you can just kick him like that for no reason?!"

Nami was trembling and looked ready to cry. Usopp embraced her gently and she burst out crying.

"I didn't want to hurt you, I'm sorry!" She shouted, sobbing.

"Calm down, Nami." Usopp kissed her on the forehead, wiping away her tears. "And Tony, you are an idiot as well. Why did you yell at her? You know she's in hysterics!"

"Sorry." The doctor lowered his gaze to his feet.

Sanji straightened, wiping his mouth; his body was shivering violently and he felt cold. Safe to say it wasn't very hot here; the clouds spanned the sky and a breeze was blowing in from the ocean.

"No need to apologize, my lady." Sanji smiled weakly at Nami. "I am the one who needs to apologize for my behavior."

"No-no, you don't need to!" Nami grabbed his hand, shaking her head in disagreement. "We're all too stressed, so that's okay. Let's be friendly with each other and everything will be alright, yes guys?"

Everyone smiled at her softly.

"So, I'll go tell Franky we found a lighter." Brook uttered and turned to leave. Sanji noticed there were many trees not far from the beach, and two other people were hardly visible, though he was able to perceive it was a man and a woman.

"Zoro!" Tony shouted to the left side of the forest. The green haired man came out from there yet headed in the opposite direction. "We're here!"

Zoro heard doctor's voice and turned to them, running with bunch of sticks in his hands. He stopped and showed his find to Tony.

"Are they suitable enough? I brought several different kinds; the ones which won't work here will have another use."

"This one is good." Tony picked a stick from the bunch. "Others will go to the fire. Oh, Zoro, we have fire now!" He smiled widely.

"Really?" Zoro's eyes widened and he chuckled in pleasure and relief. "Phew, that's good! Where did you find it?"

"My lighter happened to be waterproof." Sanji uttered, sitting down on the rock; Tony leaned toward him to apply a bandage to his arm.

"Wow, that's really good luck!" Zoro had such an excited expression on his face, which was so strange to see on this usually serious and calm man, that Sanji giggled at him. "Dude, your stupid habit saved us!"

"Not saved I'll say." Nami sighed. "Every lighter has its limit, so we need to use it only in an emergency."

Everyone nodded in agreement. Sanji pondered the realization that he had only one pack of cigarettes, and it was only a matter of time until he'd run out of them. Usually he smoked ten or fifteen cigarettes per day, but now when it occurred to him that he was stuck on a probably desert island, it was a big problem. He had already smoked one whole cigarette, meaning there were only nineteen remaining. Sanji decided to limit himself to several drags a day in order to avoid rage outbursts, which could happen if he was not smoking at all.

"Phew, it's done!" Tony stood up and wiped his forehead. "Try it; bandage should be tight enough but not too much."

Sanji tried to move his fingers inside the bandage, but they were firmly enclosed here.

"Nice work, dude." He answered with smile. The little doc immediately turn red and yelled:

"Stop it, it's not! I've only done a simple first aid bandage!"

The boy was overreacting so intensely that it was even cute; swear words contradicted his pleased face. Then Tony turned to Zoro.

"So, now I need to sew up your ankles. Sit down."

Zoro silently obeyed and sat next to Sanji on the rock; he had absolutely calm expression, unlike the doctor. Sanji noticed Tony's hands began to shake when he opened his kit and pulled out a bottle of alcohol.

"I need to treat your wounds and the needle with alcohol." He explained with a hint of worry in his voice. "Please say if it hurts."

Tony moistened another piece of Zoro's ex-shirt and attached it to the wound. Zoro frowned a little but continued to stay confident.

"Are you alright?" The doctor asked with concern.

"I'm alright, go on." The green haired man replied.

Sanji caught himself on the fact that he still couldn't take his eyes from the scar on Zoro's chest. He blinked couple of times, sliding his gaze to Tony. The boy was threading a needle, but the thing what got Sanji's attention was the extremely terrified face of little doc. Sweat broke out on his forehead, his eyes were widened in dread. Sanji raised an eyebrow and asked quietly:

"Tony, is it your first time sewing a wound?"

The doctor shut his eyes tightly and mumbled:

"Yes… I've never done it before… I mean, on a living person."

Zoro sighed heavily closing his eyes.

"Hey doc, collect yourself. There is a first time for everything. You can handle it, I have faith in you."

"R-really?" The boy asked doubtfully.

"Of course." Zoro smiled at him softly. "Just pretend I'm a corpse."

"Zoro, what are you talking about!" Tony's eyes widened. Usopp gasped and Nami rolled her eyes.

"He's right, Tony." Sanji added. He understood Zoro's idea: no matter how painful this treatment would be, Zoro was ready to endure it just to give Tony enough confidence to overcome his dread. "Look at him: you can't hurt this damn bull. Just do your work."

"Maybe you're right…" Tony inhaled deeply and raised the needle. "Okay, Zoro, just say if it hurts, okay?"

"Okay." The other man nodded.

After several deep breaths little doc inserted the needle into Zoro's ankle. Nami turned her face away; Sanji noticed she became pale. Zoro shut his eyes and started to breathe deeply and slowly; he was probably meditating. Tony put the first stitch in and cinched the thread.

"Does it…" The words had barely left his mouth when Sanji interrupted him with quiet hush, letting him know that it was better do not disturb Zoro now. Tony nodded abruptly and returned to his work. To the surprise of everyone each stitch was becoming more and more successful; thereby he handled with both wounds just in a dozen minutes. After finishing the sewing, little doc sighed heavily and pressed his fingers to his eyelids.

"I'm done, Zoro, are you alright?"

"Yes, doc." Zoro opened his eyes; a deep wrinkle imprinted into his forehead, all appearances saying that the treatment was far from pleasurable. "You did well. Thank you." He smiled at Tony gratefully and clapped him on the shoulder. The doctor sighed with relief and smiled back.

"Now I'll bandage your ankles; you should get your boots on and don't remove them before your wounds are healed. Do you understand?"

Zoro nodded and the doctor put the bandages over his ankles.

"That's all, you're free for now." Tony smiled. It seemed he was satisfied with his work.

Zoro stood up, heading to his boots which he left closer to the shore.

"So, now that everyone is healed, we can start exploring the island." Nami sighed. "I suggest we split into small groups. Seems Franky and Robin are coping well with a shelter, everyone else is better off searching for other possible survivors and food. Also perhaps we can find some useful items that could have been washed up on to the shore by the waves after the crash."

"This idea sounds pretty good, miss Nami." Sanji was spinning the lighter in his free hand; he used to calm himself down, playing with some small objects in his hand when he wasn't able to smoke. "You mentioned someone named Franky and Robin; are they those two people in the forest?"

"Yes." She nodded. "Franky is a carpenter and he is able to make some housing for the time being, even without tools."

"Carpenter? That's good. I'm a chef by the way."

"You're a chef?!" Tony and Usopp exclaimed in chorus.

"Wow, dude, I thought you were a stripper or a gigolo in such a dandy suit." Zoro giggled coming up from behind.

"Eh?!" Sanji jumped up from the rock ready to strike out. "What the hell are you saying!"

"Don't make such sharp movements, Sanji!" Tony shouted.

"Just kidding, no offense." However Zoro still had a wide grin on his face. "It's another lucky fortune that you appear to be a chef. But since we're in the middle of the ocean, I would rather call you _the Cook._" He grinned at Sanji, who was quietly pleased at heart with his new alias. "So, let's go already. Someone else could have survived as well." His expression became serious again.

"Okay, you guys are going left; me, Usopp and Tony going right." Nami commanded. "And please don't turn away from the shoreline; it's only the first day here and we're still badly oriented. Do any of you have watch?" She asked.

"I have." The green haired man answered. "It's waterproof and seems to be working."

"That's very good, mine didn't break either." She smiled. "So come back in two hours, otherwise I'll send Franky or Brook to search for. If it's needed for such strong guys as you are." Nami added unsurely.

"Sure, miss Nami, don't you worry about us!" Sanji broke into a smile and turned to the left to leave; Zoro lingered for couple of seconds and joined him on the path.

"What is that?" Sanji asked, noticing a piece of cloth in Zoro's hand.

"Piece of my shirt." He answered in confusion. "Why are you asking?"

"I just wondered why you took it."

"Idiot, we're going to search for food, right? And where are you going to put the food?"

The blond man gasped in a realization how stupid he was: he totally forgot that food carrying for was going to be a problem here. It should be noted he was rather surprised with Zoro's strong common sense. More precisely, he admired his ability to keep calm and think clearly in such extreme situation.

They moved along the shoreline blown by cool breeze. Sanji observed the ocean, which looked so calm and peaceful, so that nobody could presume it became a watery grave for hundreds of innocent people today. The blonde frowned; he used to love the ocean since his childhood and this new knowledge, or rather, proof of a common truth that ocean could be cruel, frustrated him deeply to the core.

"Zoro." He turned to the green haired man after a dozen minutes of silent walking. "Tell me… How did we get here?"

Zoro glanced at him shortly and lowered his gaze that was full of a strange mixture of emotions.

"When the plane crashed to the ocean, I stayed conscious. Unfortunately my feet were stuck in something; I noticed you were drowning and managed to free myself after several tugs, which caused me these wounds; by then I wasn't paying attention to the pain, I felt like I was numb."

"It's a result of panic." Sanji uttered in whisper.

"Apparently. Then I dove and took you up to the water's surface, you were senseless; for the moment I even thought you were dead. No." Suddenly he shook his head. "It's a lie. I could think about nothing then; I only brought you to the beach and then thought about it."

"So…" Sanji took out a cigarette, giving himself mental promise that he would make only two drags. "You saved me."

Zoro stopped and looked straight into Sanji's blue eyes.

"I just did what needed to be done."

"However, thank you." The blonde took his first deep drag, clenching a cigarette in his teeth and put his hand on the other man's shoulder. "I appreciate this with my whole being."

The green haired man blushed a little, hearing such simple and sincere gratitude, yet didn't reply him. Both men continued their walk; after a couple of minutes Sanji froze, giving Zoro a stop sign with a movement of his free hand.

"Look." The chef murmured. "It's a crab."

"Really!" Zoro exclaimed in whisper. "We have to catch him before he escapes!"

"Yep!" Sanji chuckled quietly. "Move slow and quiet, Zoro. Reach out your hand veeery carefully."

Zoro obeyed his commands; unbelievable level of concentration displayed of his face, he held out his hand as close as possible, and when it was only a couple of inches to the crab, he abruptly grabbed it.

"Yay!" Zoro screamed in joy hopping on the spot. "We got this fucker! He better be tasty!"

"Well done, Zoro!" Sanji was smiling widely, happy with their lucky find. The crab was about thirty inches without the pincers, and Sanji already was deep in his daydreams of how he would cook it.

"Let's tie him into the cloth." Zoro suggested, though since he was the only one with two operational hands, he did it himself. Sanji took his second drag, crushed the cigarette on the sole of his shoe and returned it back to the pack. Zoro stood up and walked further, handling the bundle with their prey; yet Sanji was still motionless. staring at something to the side.

"Hey Cook, let's go, why are you stopping here?" Zoro grumbled.

"Come here." Sanji asked him. Zoro turned to the other man with puzzled expression.

"What?"

"Just come here." The blonde grinned, heading backwards from the shore.

"Where are you going, we can't turn away from…"

Sanji sat down in the sand and picked up something lying next to the rock. Now Zoro was even more curious – maybe the cook had found another edible thing; so he approached Sanji and squatted beside the blonde.

"Zoro, look. They are your little friends. You and them are similar."

"What is that shit?" Zoro raised an eyebrow, staring at the little green ball in the cook's hand. Some of the similar balls were lying nearby.

"These cuties are called marimos. Just like you." Sanji finally dropped his line and burst out laughing. Zoro rolled his eyes and gave him a slight cuff to the back of the head.

"You're damn stupid, Cook. Let's move on already."

Both men stood up; Sanji was still giggling.

"But they're just like your hair!" He wiped tears, which spurted from his eyes out of laughter. "Sure, I'll call you _the Marimo_!"

"Cut it, shit-cook." Zoro muttered crossly, a vein pulsing on his forehead.

"Oh, I was only a cook and now I'm a shit-cook? Man, from now on you're a marimo, so accept it!"

They were bickering for other couple of minutes; Sanji taunted him and Zoro seemed to be embarrassed, which made Sanji gloat even more. Of course he only pretended to mock Zoro, in fact he was ecstatic because they were able to find some food and more precisely that _they survived._ But the moment two men rounded the corner of the shore, an almost surreal image appeared to their view.

Two men were lying in the shallows; the first one was settled on a large burnt metal sheet, which was partially stuck into the sand underwater, his body was barely visible under another man's. The body on top was obviously shivering; man's arms were entwining over first man's neck.

"Survivors!" Zoro gasped in shock and dashed to their direction in a flash. "Hey!"

Sanji felt his heart beating extremely fast; the overwhelmed cook followed Zoro in a stupor. Zoro reached two men and shook the one who was on top.

"Hey, hey! Answer me! Are you alright?" Dread and worry sounded in his low voice.

Sanji came closer and peered over Zoro's shoulder. The bottom man's chest was pierced through with a huge girder, still dripping fresh blood from the wound. Sanji felt his blood rushed from his head, and he shut his eyes tight, trying not to faint.

"ANSWER ME!" Zoro shouted sharply.

Finally the top man slowly turned his face to them. He was rather small; safe to say he was still a boy, but his expression was so unsuitable for such a young person. Sanji gasped – the boy's eyes were wide open, he didn't even blink; he stared at one spot wherever his head was turned. Bruises were all over his face and a wound gaped below his left eye. However Sanji's attention was more focused on the other man's freckled face: his eyes were opened and a peaceful smile rested on his lips.

"Zoro…" He muttered. "We need to move the boy out of here…"

"Yes." Zoro answered quietly closing the dead man's eyes with him palm. "But, wait a moment…" He scratched his neck in a hesitation. "I know it's rude and we shouldn't do it, but… We have to take this sheet from under him."

"You're right." Sanji sighed heavily; his hands were shaking and he felt weakness in his legs. "This guy is almost unconscious, we need to…"

Zoro picked a boy into his hands like he weighed nothing and passed his trembling body to Sanji, but right then remembered the cook had only one free arm and commanded:

"Turn around. Can you handle him on your back?"

"I'll try." Sanji sighed; his body obviously wasn't in its best form today.

"Wait a second."

Sanji heard rattling and jingle of something; he turned around and saw Zoro took off his belt with one free arm, holding the boy on his shoulder.

"I'll bind his hands with this; that way it'll be more comfortable to move."

The blonde nodded and straightened in order to allow Zoro to attach the boy's body to his back properly. The green haired man hung body onto Sanji's shoulders, and walked around to face the cook, while still supporting the boy's body behind. Sanji felt the boy's weight on his shoulders; it appeared not to be as feather light as it seemed in Zoro's hands.

"Are you alright?" Zoro asked quietly.

Sanji looked up at the other man and was caught up in the fact that suddenly the distance between their faces was so short that he felt Zoro's warm breath on his cheek; though the green haired man looked behind him at the boy and was trying to put him up easier.

"Yes I am." Sanji whispered, lowering his gaze.

Zoro stepped back a little, intending to bind boy's wrists with his belt when suddenly he froze.

"Sanji… Look what he's holding…" He uttered, barely audible.

The cook lowered his head and saw… a knife. The boy was clenching a knife in his fist.

"Oh god… Oh god!"

For a moment Sanji even thought he was dreaming; it was luck bigger than waterproof lighter or a crab they caught. He wanted to jump in joy, cry and pray to god; though the boy was still was resting on his back, he collected his will and overcame the urge.

"Damn, that's too good to be true…" Zoro carefully removed a knife from boy's grip; it came out with a little struggle. "But now we should return to others; there is no time for celebration now."

"You're right." Sanji answered, still happy about this unbelievable find. "I wonder how he got it."

"We'll ask him later when he comes to his senses. Bring him to the shore and wait for me; I have to remove the sheet."

"Zoro…" Sanji hesitated for a moment. "Are you going to leave the body here?"

Zoro was already removing girder from the man's chest, it came out with a sucking sound. Sanji turned away.

"You know, I think this boy has seen enough. Apparently this man was close to him; we can't leave the body just lying on the sand to become birds' food. It's better to bury him in the ocean."

Sanji's felt his heart skip with dismay and devastation. It wasn't like Zoro wasn't right, after all they didn't have any other choice; but still Sanji was frustrated and empty about the other man's words – they remind him how ruthless the ocean could be.

"I believe the boy would say the same." Zoro added, making a note of the cook's upset expression. "Move, your feet are wet, you can catch a cold."

When Zoro was done, he joined Sanji on the shore, bringing the sheet with him. The man's body disappeared from their view in a couple of moments.

"Rest in peace." Sanji whispered, staring at one spot.

"Rest in peace." Zoro echoed quietly.

They were silent at the whole way back. Sanji carried the boy on his back; he probably fell asleep, that was noticeable from his calm breathing. Zoro for his part was holding the bundle with the crab in one hand and the large sheet in the other. They reached their destination in about half an hour; not far off Nami, Usopp and Tony were heading from the opposite side.

"Hey!" Tony shouted and picked up his pace. "You've found a survivor!"

All three of them quickened to a run and reached Zoro and Sanji after couple of moments.

"Is he alive?" Tony asked, panting.

"Yes." Zoro replied. "Let's unbind him; he may have some serious wounds."

Sanji sat down, letting Tony and Zoro take the boy off of his back. He noticed Nami and Usopp were holding some objects in their hands.

"What did you find?" He asked.

"We found rope and this pot." Usopp grinned. "Also I collected some berries, I'm just not sure if they're edible."

He showed Sanji contents of the pot. He looked closely, picked one and bit it. The flavor was a bit sour, but still they weren't poisonous.

"They're edible." The cook claimed. "Maybe not tasty, but will do."

Usopp and Nami sighed in relief and smiled.

"We found a knife." Zoro said simply, taking a weapon from his pocket.

Everyone was silent for a long moment and then burst out screaming, dancing and jumping.

"We need to tell everybody!" Nami exclaimed with a wide grin. "Robin! Franky! Brook! Come here! We have A KNIFE!"

Suddenly shouts sounded from the side where the forest was thinnest, and then three figures ran to their direction.

"A knife?!" A large man wearing only Hawaiian shirt and speedos shouted. He also had bright-blue hair and sunglasses on his forehead; Sanji was surprised to see such a person here.

"What a relief!" A beautiful woman with mid-length black hair chuckled. The hemline of her dress was torn off, and now she leaned to remove her shoes. She just broke off the heels and put them on again.

"Yo-ho-ho-ho, what a precious find!" Brook laughed. Now Sanji noticed he was rather aged.

The new three, Nami and Usopp were examining their findings; Sanji and Zoro were just sitting at the sand and resting; Tony was treating a wound on boy's face, when suddenly he opened his eyes and said:

"Where is Ace?"

Everybody turned at him without knowing what to say; yet Zoro and Sanji were the only ones who could guess who the boy meant.

"Ace is dead." Zoro said seriously.

The guy was silent for a couple of seemingly eternal minutes; the atmosphere of rising tension was growing. Sanji frowned nervously waiting for the newcomer's outburst now. But suddenly he sat up, observing his new mates and uttered with a serious and calm tone:

_"From this moment, nobody will die here anymore."_

* * *

**A/N:**

Hi there! This chapter came out surprisingly long even for me, thus we have many events from now on. I hope you enjoyed! Thank you very much for reading :) And as always - special thanks for my sweet beta Caitlin, your great work is immeasurable!


	4. My Atonement

Zoro got out from the bath, still feeling the warmth all over his smooth skin. He grabbed a white towel (he hoped it was the clean one), dried his entire body and then froze in the realization that he forgot to bring a change of clothes. He wrapped the towel around his hips and left the bathroom.

Perona was sitting in the same armchair she sat in earlier, smoking a thin cigarette and sipping coffee. She had already changed her clothes to skinny jeans and a black and pink dotted sweater and curled her hair (she somewhat liked to set it this way); a little patched teddy-bear was settled in her lap.

"And why the heck are you stripping in front of me, little bro?" She pulled out the cigarette; the butt imprinted her red lipstick on it; and exhaled harshly.

"I forgot to grab clean clothes, mine stink." Zoro shrugged, noticing his cousin slide her gaze across his bare chest. "I just thought maybe you kept my old clothes; otherwise I'll just wash these ones."

Perona crushed the cigarette over the ashtray and stood up, heading to the wardrobe. It was not so huge, but in her small place it seemed to be gigantic, extending the entire wall.

"Here." She pulled out several pieces of cloth, throwing them to the bed. "But for god's sake, don't you dare put it on in front of me."

The green haired man nodded, a bit surprised by her last statement – what could make her think her brother (not a true sibling, but still) would want to get naked in front of her? He returned to the bathroom, took off the towel and pulled on pair of black boxers, black jeans and a bottle-green sweater. The clothes smelled like the wardrobe itself: dust and camphor scent proceeded from it. Zoro hung up the towel on the hook and turned to the door.

Perona looked down at him with her arms crossed on her chest, giving an estimating glance to his look.

"Nah, it's all wrinkled. But emerald suits you." She added with a playful smile.

"Thanks?" Zoro raised an eyebrow, not getting why it was important to say.

"So." His cousin flopped down to the armchair, lighting another cigarette. "I'm enlightened about the crash a bit more, and I don't want to bother you about it now. But yet I'm curious about your journey to the mountains." She exhaled, her lips parted somewhat seductively.

"Are you really so interested in it?" The green haired man leaned down to the messy bed again. "Okay, I'll explain, but only in brief. My distant relative, Koshiro, trained me there when I was a child. After the crash I understood I needed to return there to train more intensively."

"Why?" She raised an eyebrow.

"Because…" Zoro sighed. It was a question he'd asked himself plenty of times as well – why did he need to return there so desperately right after being discharged from the hospital? "That's because after that accident I realized I needed to become stronger."

Perona gave a whistle: it was obvious such a vague answer couldn't satisfy this curious girl's interest.

"Why?" She repeated with more pressure. Perona knew her cousin too well after all these years they spent living together in this small room; nothing could avoid her perceiving nature. Yet her little bro wasn't the one that could be cracked that easily; she noticed something changed in his behavior, and she was able to extract the truth from the stubborn man with several leading questions. Even if he wouldn't reply, Perona could register his reaction and make some conclusions in result. "So tell me, my sweet bro. As I can see, you're daydreaming while talking to me all this time."

Zoro couldn't traverse her words: a certain blond cook was filling all his thoughts, thus it was really hard to concentrate and talk with Perona. He also caught himself wearing a stupid grin all the time since he'd left the bathroom.

"What are you trying to say?" He lifted his head, looking straight into his sister's wide black eyes. She smirked at him and Zoro lost his next line.

"I know you too well, little bro." She glanced at him knowingly. "If you want to become stronger, it means you have someone to protect."

Perona observed Zoro's changing expression: at first surprise, then crease of seriousness appeared on his forehead, then a soft smile broke the steel face, and a spot of small embarrassment added in the end. Bingo.

"I won." She exclaimed with a cocksure grin. The swordsman shouldn't underestimate her: she studied analytical psychology in the college before she was expelled because of payment troubles (Zoro had the same story himself), but still she was really talented in it. "So, what kind of person is she?" Perona pondered in wonder, biting her black-painted nail. "Oh…" Her eyes widened in comprehension and then broke into a wide grin again. "It's not 'she'; it's 'he'!" She even jumped on the spot, seeing her cousin blush a little and evaded her gaze. "Right; previously you mentioned that you found one man from that island. And I'm sure you wouldn't rushing instantly to a man that you don't care for after two years of absence, instead of going straight to your beloved cousin's house. It's him, am I right?"

Zoro already understood it was pointless to hide it from his clever sister and simply nodded in reply.

"Hehe, so I guessed right!" Perona rubbed her hands, obviously enjoying herself. She put another cigarette to her lips. "Well, what kind of a person is he? What does he look like? Describe him, little bro!" She giggled at Zoro's little annoyed expression.

"Hey, don't you even mind that I've… fallen for a man?" He forced the last words out.

"Who, me?" She waved her hand, laughing. "I'm the last person who cares about gender. Also I expected my brother would never fall in with some stupid stereotypes. People's personalities are what matter, not a gender or something!" She became even desperate exclaiming the last phrase. Zoro nodded in agreement; he always thought the same and was glad his sister supported him in this matter. Well, maybe not always, but his first tragically ended love gave him some life credos, including this one. Even he hadn't been realizing it when _that accident_ took its place long time ago in the mountain village where Koshiro lived.

"Ahem, so I want you to describe your lover for me before I see him with my own eyes." Perona interrupted the brooding swordsman's thoughts, smiling at him softly with her both palms supporting her chin.

"You know I'm not good at this shit…" Zoro tried to get away, feeling a wave of slight embarrassment.

"No-no, I'm not buying your pitiful excuses! Describe him! His hair color, his eyes, his body. I want to know." She winked.

Zoro lowered his eyelids in a half. It wasn't really a big deal to describe the blond cook, after all his face had been imprinted into man's mind long time ago.

"He's blond. But not the simple blond; he's hair is like…gold. It glimmers in the sunrays with the all shades of yellow; it reminds me of sand, the sun, a waterfall, even the autumn leaves. Especially in the rays of the sunset." Zoro closed his eyes; flashes flickered in his memory. "And his eyes… They're the most beautiful color I have ever seen. They can be light-blue in the morning, dark deep blue when it rains, transparent gray when their owner is sad. They're like _the ocean. _His skin is smooth and pale, but not a sickly pale; more like the shade between warm pattern and cold.

"Wow..." Perona quietly interrupted his monologue with whisper. "What a beautiful picture. It seems you're really deeply in love, Zoro."

Zoro smiled softly; still the pink haired girl noticed the hint of bitterness in his expression. A sorrowful thought appeared in her head and she frowned.

"Does… he love you back?" She asked barely audible.

The swordsman opened his eyes and sighed; this time his emotion wasn't as obvious to the clever girl.

"I hope so." He sat on the bed, reaching out his arms.

Perona nodded and pulled out another cigarette.

"So, what about you? You're dressed up, going somewhere?" Zoro wondered.

"Oh, I almost forgot!" She suddenly jumped from the armchair, heading to the wardrobe. "I have damn nothing in the fridge, and I have starving poor you as well." She turned at him and smiled, taking out her coat. "Do you mind waiting a little while I'll go to the store?"

"Okay." Zoro smiled at his sister. "By the way… Do you have a shift tonight?"

He and Perona used to work at the club her boyfriend owned; Gecko Moriah was his name. Zoro was a bouncer and Perona was a bartender, but since Zoro got to the crash and then moved to the village, he wasn't sure his cousin was still working there.

"No…" She suddenly lowered her gaze, a shade of slight sadness touched her usually cheerful face. "Moriah was pissed that you were missing then, he told me many disgusting things about you and I broke up with him. I just couldn't handle his stupid insults; it wasn't your fault anyway…"

Zoro felt his blood turned cold in realization his sister was kicked out of work because of him.

"But don't worry!" She noticed her brother become pale; it was visible even on his tanned skin. "I've never regret it; it was a nasty place to work from the very beginning. I think I've never would have started to work here if we both hadn't had a strong need for money at the time. Now I have a part-time job in a flower shop." She smiled brightly; thereby the green haired man instantly felt the weight lift from his shoulders. "So, I'm leaving now! Take a good rest, little bro, I hope you won't starve!"

She waved a hand in goodbye and disappeared behind the door. Zoro leaned back again.

_Describe him! His hair color, his eyes, his body._ Perona's words echoed in his head. And her question… It was the matter in which Zoro couldn't be sure of from the start. Back then, two years ago, Sanji had some feelings for him. But now… Zoro returned to this problem many times in his mind while training. Does the cook love him? He couldn't say for sure. And now there was only one opportunity to clear all his doubts.

* * *

After that statement the boy was conscious long enough to learn his name – Luffy it was; and then he passed out again. His sleep was deep enough for Tony to sew his wound without any big troubles; thus the little doc was pretty easygoing during his work.

The sky was still filled with gray rainy clouds; nonetheless rays of the red sunset fought their way through, enveloping the evening's forest with disquieting shadows and bloody light. Sanji and Zoro mutely agreed to keep quiet about Luffy's friend's death until the boy would be able to talk himself.

Now everyone went to the area in the thickest part of the forest, where Franky managed to build their temporary shelter with large leaves and bamboo sticks. Zoro asked if they could make use of the metal sheet they'd found; the carpenter answered he'd think of something to do with it tomorrow. Everybody was too exhausted after the crash; nervous and probably deep in thought, they sat around the fire settled next to the shelter. Usopp and Brook went to the shore to set three SOS fires for the possible rescue team, while Sanji was boiling the crab they caught earlier. He had to use salty ocean water since they still hadn't gotten any fresh water.

"You know, if we don't find a source of fresh water, we'll die from thirst." Robin broke the silence quietly, flames from the fire reflected in her dark eyes even a little devilishly.

"Robin, don't say such things!" Nami exclaimed in irritation, yet more with dread. The raven haired woman said the very truth after all. "Look: the sky looks like it is about to rain; I think tomorrow we'll be able to collect some water."

Tony and Franky sighed in relief. Zoro glanced to the blond cook with a hint of concern; the other man easily caught his eye and nodded barely visible. Even so if Nami was right, all the utensils they had was only one pot, in which Sanji was cooking their dinner. He replaced the berries Usopp found previously to a piece of cloth, which appeared to be the hem of Robin's dress. These berries could quench the thirst a little, yet they were too sour to eat many of them. Zoro already had eaten couple of them and now his tongue was smarting steadily.

Finally their modest dinner was ready and everyone was keeping from drooling in varying degrees, waiting for Usopp and Brook to return.

"You know," Tony turned to Sanji, "Brook seems familiar to me. Where could I have seen him?"

Sanji shrugged, tearing off the pincer; it was better to save for Luffy, who was still sleeping in the shelter.

"Hm, I thought so too." Nami pondered. "Maybe it's better to ask him?"

As the words escaped her mouth, Usopp and Brook stepped to the visible area.

"What did you want to ask me, lady?" Brook turned to Nami, taking his seat on the sand next to Robin.

"Tony and I found you somewhat familiar, but can't remember where we have seen you." The redhead explained. "Are you…"

"Yo-ho-ho, I've never expected somebody will recognize me." The tall man giggled. "I'm the Soul King."

"Soul King?!" Tony, Nami and Usopp exclaimed in chorus.

"Who is this 'sauce king'?" Zoro bent to Sanji, chewing the crab meat. The green haired man found it rather unpalatable, still he decided not to upset the blonde with such rudeness – poor man was coping with only one hand after all, apart from the fact that they didn't have any spices here.

"Soul King." The chef answered quietly, observing Tony and Usopp dancing joyfully near Brook and whistling familiar melody. "He's kind of a celebrity, a singer. I'm not very aware of his creation since I'm not a fan of TV shows. I even haven't got a TV in my apartment."

Zoro raised an eyebrow in a pretty pleasant surprise. He himself wasn't used to watch TV, nonetheless he didn't expect such an extroversive person (or he just seemed this way) as the cook to reject such broadcasting.

"But I've heard some of his songs on the radio, he's quiet popular as I understand." The blonde added, carefully biting a piece of meat. Suddenly his gaze changed to one of frustration and pity; Zoro guessed he figured out the meat wasn't tasty at all.

"Maybe you didn't guess who I am because I always wear a skeleton mask in all of my videos!" Brook smirked, enjoying himself. He seemed pretty pleased with his new fans, appearing in such an unexpected place, and Zoro felt strong dislike to the tall man's cocksure grin.

"Probably!" Tony was obviously overexcited with a sudden meeting with his idol. "Soul King, my favorite song of yours is 'My lady is on fire'!" He cleared his throat and began to sing, trying to imitate a lower voice:

_ My lady is on fire_

_ I will love her all night long_

_ This desperate desire_

_ Will show up in my song! _

Zoro winced of hearing such untalented and stupid lyrics coming from the mouth of his new young friend.

"Yo-ho-ho, I remember this one!" Brook smirked. "It was my deadline to write the song, and my producer was pissed off as all hell; I managed to outline this one in the morning after a night I'd spent with three sexy ladies in my bed. The hangover was also very bad, so I even didn't give a fuck about the lyrics; I've never expected it would become a hit!" He burst out laughing in the most disgusting way. Sanji and Zoro exchanged irritated glances, which were originally supposed to be directed to a certain singer.

The next moment after the tall man told this awful story, the younger man froze in his spot with absolutely floored expression. His entire look showed he didn't expect something like this from his beloved idol; the boy lowered his gaze and silently returned to his seat next to Sanji.

"Brook, that's not super." Franky said seriously. "Look, you disappointed your little fan."

Brook simply shrugged; seemed he didn't really care for the boy's feelings, he told the truth after all and there was nothing to be ashamed of. Awkward silence covered the entire company till the end of their meal. Franky was the first who stood up and talked:

"Dudes, I suggest a nightshift. We still don't know much about this island and its possible residents, so it's better to play it safe. Also somebody should keep an eye on the fire. The ones who are injured – go get some good sleep, the others please proceed for distribution."

And nobody left their seats after the blue haired carpenter's words.

"Cook, you've heard, go get some good sleep." Zoro uttered with his eyes on his boots.

"Pf, broken arm isn't an injury at all." Sanji rolled his eyes.

"No, mister Chef, he's right." Robin nodded. "You should go get some rest. And you," she turned to Zoro, "should go as well."

"Nah, I don't need rest. Moreover legs are not as important as hands if we have to fight some wild creatures." He added with grin. Nami gasped in a mention of 'creatures', Usopp swallowed nervously.

"You have a point." The black haired woman smiled contentedly. "So, Franky, who will be on watch tonight?"

"Ahem." Franky cleared his throat and crossed his huge arms across his chest. "Let's change every two hours. Now it's…" He bent to Nami, checking the time on her wristwatch. "Almost eleven PM. That means we have eight hours till seven AM when it will already be light. Thus we need four strong dudes for tonight. I can be the first on watch. Who's next?"

"I can." Robin raised her hand.

"No!" Franky exclaimed. "I said 'strong dudes'!"

"So what?" She raised an eyebrow. "Do you think I'm not strong enough to fight some of the possible 'creatures' mister Greenhead mentioned?"

Everybody stared at Robin with disbelief at what they'd heard just now.

"Robin, I'm sure you're strong woman, but please, rely on our men." Nami put her hand on the other woman's shoulder. "You seem to be very tired, even if you struggle not to show it."

Robin's eyes widened barely noticeably, and Zoro drew his attention to the bags below her eyes. The red haired girl was absolutely right, and he mentally admired her attentiveness.

After a short discussion (during which Sanji and Robin were assured they were better to rest for tonight), the watchers were selected: Franky from eleven till one AM, Brook from one till three, Usopp (he tried to avoid it but was forced to in the end as a man with least amount of bruises) from three to five, and Zoro from five to seven. The green haired man was ready to switch places with the long-nosed guy, but the women insisted on his rest at least till the early morning since he had some pretty serious wounds. It had becoming rather cold outside, and everybody except Franky got into the shelter. Their housing was very narrow for such a crowd, though they had no choice and were grateful for this one. At least everyone except Brook.

"The fuck, this dump is tight like a virgin." He cursed, rolling his eyes. "And it's damn cold here!"

"Brook, shut up and appreciate Franky's hard work!" Nami hissed at him, trying not to wake Luffy. "He was able to make it from the materials at hand even without any tools! And of course it's cold, do you think it's possible to attach some central heating in here?!" She was obviously enraged; Usopp put his arm across her shoulders, trying to set a limit to their quarrel.

"We can simply warm up from each other." Robin uttered quietly, lying down on the leaves underlay between Luffy and Nami. "Just snuggle to each other tightly and it won't be so cold." She smiled charmingly, supporting her chin with her palm.

"What stupidness." Brook sighed heavily, everything in his behavior indicated he wasn't pleased with his company. Zoro was ready to kick him out when Tony quietly asked him:

"Zoro, I hope you don't mind if I snuggle with you." His voice still sounded sorrowful, and the green haired man's anger decreased, he broke into soft smile.

"Sure, don't be scared. Nobody will harm you here."

The boy nodded and laid behind Zoro, clenching onto his shoulders like the older man was a solid stone wall. Zoro felt he was shaking like a leaf; he couldn't spot the boy was frightened or upset, but the thing he knew for sure was that he would beat Brook's cocksure mug if he dared to offend the little doc again. What an ass this stupid singer was.

The little quarrel was still in progress, Sanji felt unbearable exhaustion all over his body, so he decided not to pay any more attention to the noise and laid down next to Zoro. The other man seemed to be asleep already, as well as the boy behind his back. The cook tried not to wake the marimo and positioned his body with a small distance between his own spine and other man's torso. Suchwise Sanji was right next to the shelter's 'wall' and a cold draft didn't allow him to fall asleep immediately, notwithstanding he was tired as never before in his whole life. Usually he used to sleep pretty messily in his large bed, tossing and turning in his sleep and frequently woke up lying diagonally or upside-down, thereby now he wasn't very comfortable passing out in such a narrow space. In addition to all of these factors which didn't allow him to fell asleep quickly and peacefully, he had an unbearable desire to smoke. He tried to close his eyes and simply recollect something nice, but all of his efforts were replaced by the fixed idea to go out and take couple of drags. Besides it was becoming colder and colder with every passing minute, and after about half an hour he was shaking violently (despite the fact he was wearing both his shirt and jacket), he sighed and slightly pressed his back to Zoro's warm abdomen. Seriously, the man's body was unbelievably warm and the blonde hardly put down the idea to turn around to face him and curl up pressing to his bare chest. But to his surprise, Zoro wrapped his hand around cook's waist pressing him tighter; he was shaking from cold himself. Sanji wasn't sure the marimo was asleep or not, but he instantly felt comfortable enough to close his eyes and finally passed out.

* * *

Zoro woke up abruptly throwing open his eyes, the cold sweat dripping from his forehead. He dreamed about that man they found dead yesterday; more precisely, about how he was removing the girder from the corpse's wound. The nightmare was too realistic, and the worst part about it was that Zoro somehow couldn't remove it completely: each time the girder was ready to come out, manifesting bloody ragged flesh, suddenly it slipped back deeply into the wound, thus Zoro had to pull it out over and over again. Still shivering from the horrifying dream, he suddenly found himself curled up and nuzzled into the cook's chest, who was still sleeping and hugging him with his free hand. The green haired man was frightened he could harm the blonde's broken arm worse in this position, but then he ascertained it was still fixed as tightly as before. Zoro sighed in relief, easing out from the cook's embrace, and sat up. It wasn't so dark outside and he figured that his shift may start soon (he'd lent his wristwatch to Franky last night, so the carpenter could check the time for the shift change). Zoro observed still sleeping people: there was everybody except Usopp; therefore he was on his shift now. The green haired man also noticed Robin was resting her head and arm on Franky's chest like they were a married couple, still by all appearances they weren't and had become acquainted only yesterday. Zoro frowned in realization of how silly he looked curled up and shaking in the cook's embrace, but then chuckled quietly at the mental image and straightened. Though not really straightened; there wasn't enough space to stand up in full. He made a note the cook sprawled across the vacant place after Zoro left, and Tony rolled to him, pressing his small shaking body to the blonde. The green haired man smiled softly at them, both were so cute that he was ready to burst out laughing, imagining how embarrassed they would be if he were to describe this scene to them.

Still suppressing his snickers, the marimo went out from the shelter and at the same time the mighty cold hit his half-naked body. It took him several moments to realize the cold wasn't just in the air; it was _a rain_. He glanced to the fire, which may possibly die out from the raindrops; unfortunately his concerns had come true: the fire was barely flaming. He dashed to the side, grabbing the metal sheet to cover the fire, when he noticed Usopp was peacefully snoring on his watch.

"Damn it, get up, idiot!" Zoro shouted, sending a slight kick to the sleeping guy. Usopp blinked several times before woke up; still he had a deep sleepy and discontent look.

"What… What is it…" He mumbled hoarsely.

"'What is it' you're asking?!" Zoro felt his arms weren't enough to hold such a big sheet by himself. "Stand up and hold this shit! The fire could die out because of the rain that you dismissed while sleeping!"

Usopp rubbed his eyes and then froze, staring into the space.

"Oh god… Our SOS signals!"

"Crap!" Zoro cursed. "Okay, go check them, hurry!"

The long-nosed guy instantly rushed to the shore. Zoro cleared his throat and cried loudly:

"WAKE UP EVERYBODY! IT'S RAINING! THE FIRE CAN DIE OUT!"

He felt his arms were shaking under the load of the sheet; fortunately Franky jumped out of the shelter and joined the hold in a flash.

"Damn, dude! That sucks!" He growled; his hair was in a total mess and his face was still sleepy. Leastwise he was capable to wake up immediately, and Zoro was grateful to him mentally.

"Usopp went to check the fires on the shore. I'm almost sure they will die out, but at least we must keep this one!"

Franky nodded, probably thinking of something.

"Bro, we need to make an overhang from this sheet." He finally said. "Can you go bring some bamboo sticks, they were in that direction." He shook his head to the inland of the forest. Zoro released a sheet and instantly rushed in the… opposite direction. "To the left, dude!" Franky exclaimed; Zoro turned around still in motion and escaped from view.

Everybody slowly got out of the shelter.

"It's so cold." Nami cringed. The rain intensified; everybody shivered from chill.

"Maybe it's better to return…" Tony sighed heavily. Suddenly Usopp's figure appeared to their view.

"Guys, the signal fires died out, I could do nothing!" The guy uttered disappointedly, he looked really sorry.

"Don't worry about it, Usopp-bro!" Franky grinned cheerfully. "Our first priority is to make an overhang for this one and collect some fresh water! Somebody, bring me the knife and the rope we found yesterday; Zoro-bro went to find some bamboo sticks to fix the sheet!"

Sanji lit up the cigarette and inhaled the smoke deeply into his lungs. Two drags, no more or less. He headed closer to the fire where the pot was settled on the sand, grabbed it, checking its holding capacity. It was about five liters by his eyes estimation; Sanji took it out from the sheet Franky was holding and placed near the shelter entrance. He took his next and _final _deep drag; the bitter smoke filled his lungs and his head became a little dizzy like it always went in the first months he began smoking.

"Miss Nami." The blonde turned to the red haired girl. "You know, this pot isn't really enough to keep water in it. We need some utensil to cook in too."

"Yeah, you're probably ri…"

"THE KNIFE IS NOWHERE TO BE FOUND!" Tony's shout sounded from the shelter, the next moment his disheveled head appeared to the view. Everyone froze on their spots, staring at the little doc silently.

"Did you searched everywhere around?" Franky asked carefully, trying not to upset Tony further; poor boy was on his edge of crying.

"Yes! And it's gone!" The doctor's voice broke and he sniffed sorrowfully. Robin came closer to the boy and wrapped her arms around his neck, stroking his unruly hair gently. At the same moment Zoro appeared from the depth of the forest, holding a bunch of bamboo sticks in his hands. He observed the whole scene with puzzled face and asked:

"What the hell happened?"

"The knife is gone." Sanji answered in whisper. Zoro's eyes widened and he cursed harshly.

"By the way." Brook coughed, drawing everybody's attention to himself. "This guy you two found yesterday – Luffy, if I remember correctly – where is he?"

Everybody looked around, and the same question came to their minds.

"He was the one who found the knife, right? And now he's escaped with it."

"No." Usopp's voice sounded serious and straight. Everyone now glanced to his direction, waiting what the long-nosed guy was going to say. However he was silent, he looked directly to Nami's eyes. "Nami. Again?" He approached her; Sanji noticed she was avoiding his intense gaze, her knees shivering slightly.

"W-what are you talking about?" Nervous smile broke into her face.

"You know what I'm talking about." He took a deep breath and suddenly did a thing nobody expected from this harmless guy: he slapped Nami across her cheek and yelled: "How many times do I have to cover up your crimes?! I'm tired of this shit! Give me the knife, quick!"

"Hey, Usopp, what the fuck!" Sanji shouted crossly, rushing to the shivering lady, which fell to her knees, sobbing. He pressed Nami to his chest, trying to ask if she was alright, but she eased out of his arms and took out an object from her jeans pocket. This object was, for everyone's shock, the knife in question.

"Miss Nami, why did you…" The blond man wasn't able to finish his phrase, when Nami burst out crying and instantly dashed inside the shelter.

The rain eased up and only rare drops were still dripping from the gray sky. Nobody dared to speak, listening to the redhead's sobbing.

"I'll go comfort her." Robin uttered quietly and disappeared inside the housing.

Sanji resisted the urge to smoke again since he already did the two morning drags he promised to himself. He went closer to Usopp and harshly grabbed him by the collar.

"Don't you dare to hit a lady _ever _again." He hissed furiously and abruptly released the guy from his grip, making him fall to his knees. To the surprise of everyone, Usopp wasn't scared at all; his face displayed deep frustration and disappointment.

"Nami is a kleptomaniac." He whispered, looking at the one spot. "I dated her for about a year, and in all that time I never paid attention to the fact that something was off about her behavior. It was my biggest flaw, and I regretted my inadvertence many times." He sighed heavily, closing his eyes. "Half a year ago we got married, and then I learned about her obsession. I was too careless about it for the first time being; I even substituted for her sometimes when she was about to be caught shoplifting. She never stole something big or expensive; more like chocolates or bubble-gum, so I didn't want to make a mountain out of a molehill."

"Have you tried to buy her what she wanted?" Tony asked, barely audible.

"Of course I have. Many times I suggested to her to buy something that she desired, but she just laughed and said that it's better to steal instead of paying money for the wanted object. These words made me worry even then, but somehow I still allowed her to do it…" Usopp's voice broke, but he resisted the tears. "At first she was stealing something tiny, but eventually she ended up robbing the underwear and jewelry… The expensive ones. My whole salary would have went to the fines if she'd be caught, and a couple of times I was almost arrested. I didn't want her to go to the jail and that's why…" Usopp finally burst out crying. Tony stroked his shoulder, doctor's gaze was so compassionate, suchwise everyone started to feel pity for the long-nosed guy. "That's why I lied! I lied all the time! Even to myself…" He wasn't able to speak anymore.

Sanji sighed heavily, squatting in front of him. Again the thought that he desperately needed a drag reached the blonde's mind, but he managed to get rid of it at least for now.

"Usopp." He spoke quietly, yet everybody was able to hear his voice. "Do you love her?"

The long-nosed guy looked at him with surprise; he didn't expect such a question now. He wiped his tears with a back of his hand and uttered confidently:

"Yes. I love Nami with all my heart."

The blond man gave him a soft smile and squeezed his shoulder gently.

"That's what I wanted to hear from you. You know, everybody has their problems; but as long as the love is alive, you both can overcome it."

Usopp broke into a weak smile and nodded slowly.

"All you need for now is just wait for the moment you will be ready to apologize. Sincerely." Sanji added, stressing the importance of this word with his tone.

"Thank you, Sanji…" Usopp lowered his gaze, trying not to break into tears again. The cook clapped his shoulder once again and stood up.

"Ahem." Franky coughed. "Now, that we've cleared the case more or less, I think we should split up and search for Luffy."

Everybody nodded synchronically.

"Zoro-bro, do you mind to helping me with the sheet?" The carpenter turned to the green haired man, who was standing on spot silently the whole time the scene had been playing out with his arms crossed over his chest.

"Sure." He agreed.

"Okay. Then I suggest our girls stay here, Brook and Tony-bro – you go to search to the right, Usopp-bro, you're going to the left. And you," he shook his head to Sanji's direction, "go find some food." The blue haired man sighed. "Guys… I know we need to search for any possible treasures which might be saved from crash, but I'm worried for this guy. He may get lost or something, so finding him is our first priority."

The men silently agreed and dispersed in opposite directions.

Sanji went to the shore, observing the coastline for something edible. He was luck to find some mussels and placed them into his pocket, but that's where his fortune ended. After a dozen minutes of pointless searching, he collapsed in the sand, stretching his one free arm and legs widely. He looked into the sky. It was gray, but still had some spots of blue; and this blueness was something he could observe peacefully for hours. The breeze from the ocean fanned his hair softly; he suddenly caught himself thinking that Zoro said the same thing to him while teaching him to meditate in that misfortunate plane. Who could believe now that it was only yesterday? For Sanji it seemed like years separated him from the moment he'd gotten on board, and, it was even hard to admit, from his life in the town. He remembered everything well: the 'Baratie', his step-father Zeff, his friends, but something was off with his memories. He felt like they didn't belong to him anymore, like they were memories of a different person, and Sanji was just looking through this person's photo album, where every picture was, for unknown reasons, blurry.

"Hey, are you alright?" A concerned voice sounded and the next moment the face of the marimo appeared to Sanji's vision.

"Yeah." He answered quietly, smiling at the other man softly.

"It's just… I saw you collapsed and thought maybe you lost consciousness." He explained.

"No, I just decided to take a break. Maybe you better to lie down too? I feel uncomfortable when people hang over me."

The marimo shrugged and got down on the sand next to the blonde. Sunrays tore the gray veil of the clouds; and Sanji noticed three golden earrings flashed in Zoro's left ear. He wondered how he hadn't noticed them before; maybe he was too nervous to observe things around him.

"Nice earrings." He chuckled.

"Em… Thanks?" The green haired man raised an eyebrow; he had no idea why the cook needed to say it now; curiosity imprinted on to his face, but he decided not to ask. He guessed the blonde had plenty of things to say; the things that were more important. And Zoro was ready to listen carefully.

"Marimo, do you live in B*****?" He asked, his eyes calmly fixed on the sky.

"Yes. I'm not originally from there, but for the last several years I've live there with my cousin."

"Mm." The blonde closed his eyes, weak smile appeared on his face. "You know, I haven't lived in B***** my whole life either. I used to live in M****** till I was six. It was a peaceful and quiet coastal village settled at the shore of the ocean. I remember I spent all the time playing on the beach, I learned to swim there as well. It was a windy place because of the vicinity of the ocean, nevertheless the breeze was never cold. Or I just thought so. Our house was very close to the beach, every morning my mother took me with her there. While she would rest on the lounge and read, I would wade in the water. The water wasn't as cold as the breeze itself, the sunrays reflected at the waves in a most beautiful way. I remember when I finally had becoming tired; I straightened my limbs on the sand and observed the sky. The sky there was the bluest in the whole world; it rarely was dull, mostly littered with curly clouds which I always wanted to touch – they seemed very soft, like cotton." The blonde subsided and kept silence for a several long moments. They both were observing the sky, which became clearer and bluer, but it still was far from Sanji's description. Then the cook turned to Zoro and smiled at him dolefully. "And then my mother died. Her distant relative, Zeff, adopted me, I've living with him since six years and now I'm working at his restaurant 'Baratie' in B***** as a sous chef." He pondered a little and added: "At least I worked here till yesterday."

Zoro scowled. Apparently the blonde tried to accept the current situation they all were stuck in. That wasn't a bad thing if he would think carefully; after all, humility was a way better then panic at this point; but still the green haired man felt unaccountable bitter pity for his new blonde friend. It was even shameful for some reason; they all should be brave and face this challenge of fate courageously, using a clear and calm brain. But instead of being calm, Zoro was oddly frustrated with other man's sorrowful words; frustrated not only for himself and Sanji. The images of his friends and relatives swept through his mind, and suddenly an unbearable anxiety hit him. What if his family thinks he's dead? What if Perona cried her eyes out already? And he could do fucking nothing! There was no way to contact the outside world; it was obvious fact from the very beginning, still the _realization_ of it was something bigger and harder to accept.

"Zoro, what's with you?" Sanji was looking at him with concern, a deep wrinkle imprinted to his half-visible forehead. The green haired man caught himself at the fact that his eyes were wide open in dread and he panted.

"I just… Nevermind, I just remembered something." It was pretty cheap excuse to believe, but Zoro just didn't want the blonde to realize the fact that he had grasped himself just now. Of course the cook didn't buy his cover.

"Something what? Tell me." He bit his lower lip and pouted, Zoro didn't know if it was in jest or seriously.

"Nah, I just…" Zoro closed his eyes and pressed his fingertips to his eyelids. "You were talking about your hometown and your mother like your childhood was yesterday." He decided to start from the beginning. "And you know, when I'm trying to recollect mine, it's always so mute and unclear, like it wasn't mine at all. I don't remember my parents at all; from the early childhood I lived with my great uncle in a dojo in the mountains. All I can remember is that I always was training with swords here."

"What kind of sword?" The cook wondered.

"Katana. My great uncle has an eastern parentage; so he was training many children in his dojo besides me. There was a girl who was much more skilled than me. I was even envious of her skill, naïve child which I was then, and she in turn always was bothered that she was a girl and couldn't become a sword master because of her gender. By then I couldn't understand why she was so concerned about it, of course I knew girls have less physical strength than guys, but still I couldn't get why it would prevent her from becoming a great swordsman."

"Do you still not get it?" Sanji chuckled softly.

"You may laugh as much as you want, shit-cook." Zoro snorted. "But yes, I still don't understand. You know, swordsmanship is a thing where physical characteristics don't play as many roles as some ignoramuses can think; it's all more about your spiritual force."

"But, dumb marimo, why do you think she didn't mean exactly this as her flaw?" Sanji uttered. Zoro was overwhelmed: how the cook could figure it out in a couple of moments, while it took the swordsman about fifteen years and he hadn't even assumed this possibility?

"Damn…" He hissed. "You're quite smart, idiot-cook. I really didn't think about it. However why do you think so? I thought that gender doesn't matter in spiritual power at all."

"But it does." The cook scratched his chin wistfully. "Look at miss Nami for example. Addiction is always a hard thing to overcome, but women are more…" He twisted his hand in the air, trying to find right words. "They're more, safe to say, 'temporary'. For further example: imagine any woman has a crush on someone. Did girls have a crush on you sometimes?" He added with a wide grin.

"Maybe. Why is it important? You're out of line, moron."

"No, I'm on line, follow me further. I mean, when a woman has an obsession, she's passionate and all her feelings are burning inside her." The cook now twisted a lighter in his hand nervously. "But strong feelings are usually temporary for them; maybe that's why your friend was so concerned: she simply realized her willpower could break, but yet the swordsman should possess such qualities as calmness, and the ability to focus and think clearly."

"Cook, I think you're getting too deep into this shit. I doubt a little girl had such thoughts in her little head." But nevertheless Zoro should cut him some slack: the cook's words weren't absolute nonsense after all, and the swordsman just wondered where this man, who at first sight was cocksure and infantile, could obtain such a strong ability to perceive things. This was another side of his character with which Zoro was pleasantly surprised (even if he wouldn't admit it out loud); the cook wasn't as simple as he had thought just yesterday, when he accidentally spill out his coffee to his fancy suit.

"Yep, you're right." Sanji smiled softly. "I really was out of line after all; just trying to focus on something other than the thought that my fucking arm is itchy as hell." He sighed and reached out on the sand. "By the way, how is this girl doing now? Did she overcome her fears and become a master of the sword?"

Zoro closed his eyes. _Little senseless body. Blood on the forehead. She breathed only few hours ago, and from now on she would never again. Never fighting with Zoro. Never running around the yard trying to catch butterflies. Never lying on the snow with him staring to the night sky. Never again he will hear her light-hearted laughter. Never again. _Pushing away all of the mental images, he said simply, trying not to think about the words' meaning:

"No, she died when she was still a child."

Sanji gasped quietly, his nose wrinkled. Zoro hated when people gave him such worried expressions; the fact that they could pity him pissed him off. But somehow he wasn't pissed at the cook, noticing _the change in his blue eye. _It was odd: Zoro could swear a minute ago Sanji's irises were light-blue, but for unknown reason they suddenly became gray.

"I'm sorry." He uttered simply, still sincerely, lowering his gaze. "But at least now we're even."

"Nah, don't apologize, it was many years ago after all." Zoro dismissed, nonetheless his words were only halfway truth. Despite the fact Kuina died long time ago; sometimes he still had nightmares about that accident. But it was an absolute no to tell the man he met _only yesterday _about his deep psychological traumas, this was a way of showing his weakness. It was out of question for Zoro to show his weaknesses to anyone, even if this certain someone was already pretty close to him. Strangely, in one day Zoro was used to the blond cook like he was his childhood friend; he never felt himself so comfortable with any of his friends besides Kuina, though Kuina again was a person he preferred not to think about too much for the sake of his own sanity. Maybe it was because of the entire atmosphere of the island; they were stuck here in a small group of people, and one of the most important criteria to survive was to trust his companions. He knew that perfectly in his mind, but still his instincts couldn't allow him to trust, for example, Brook or Nami completely for the obvious reasons; but the cook was another story. He didn't even know why, but he just _felt _Sanji was a person he could rely on with his life. It was a new thing to realize for a usually uncommunicative and introversive man as Zoro was, that he could become friends with an unfamiliar person so quickly.

They just laid silently at the sand for who knows for how long, staring to the sky, where clouds were running slowly and peacefully. "_The sky and the ocean are similar not because of their blueness." _Sanji thought. "_They're similar because no matter what is happening with people between the two, they both remain the same. Always." _Suddenly his thinking was interrupted with barely familiar shouting voice:

"Hey, guys!" The owner of the voice moved toward their direction; both men sat up looking at the oncoming Luffy.

"Oh, they found him, what a relief." Sanji sighed, taking the pack of cigarettes out of his jacket pocket.

"Guys!" Luffy stopped near them, panting. "Come with me, I discovered a waterfall inside the forest!"

Zoro and Sanji gasped in chorus and jumped up in a flash with wide grins on both of their faces.

"Oh god, really?!" The blonde couldn't believe his ears; a source of the fresh water was the matter he had been bothered most about.

"Yep!" Luffy broke into unbelievably wide and happy smile, giggling joyfully. "Let's go already!"

The three of them rushed from the spot, Sanji and Zoro were following younger boy. He was giggling in anticipation of showing them his precious find. They ran past their camp deeper to the forest; Sanji caught himself on the thought that he hadn't been inside the forest yet.

"By the way." Luffy turned to them in motion. "Are you guys brothers?"

"Nope." Zoro raised an eyebrow. "Why do you think so?"

"We aren't even similar at all." Sanji rolled his eyes.

"Really?" Then was Luffy's turn to be surprised: he found both men the most similar to each other among the entire group. "Then maybe you're close friends?"

"Not really." Sanji started to feel annoyed because of boy's intense curiosity.

"Oh, I know!" He abruptly stopped on the spot, making both men smash into him. "You're married!" The wide smile on boy's face showed all his thirty-two teeth.

"NO!" Zoro and Sanji exclaimed in chorus, synchronically giving him not very strong but fast blows to the head from the two different sides.

"What the fuck is with these stupid questions?!" Zoro was obviously pissed off.

"The hell made you think me, the ladies' white knight, would marry a man!" Sanji yelled at the boy crossly, nevertheless Luffy still looked like the most cheerful and happy man in the world.

"Your reactions are really funny, guys." Luffy was still giggling, Sanji noticed the bandage below his eye was coming unstuck; the cook leaned to the boy, who was sitting on the ground and adjusted the patch.

"Let's go already. Did somebody else go to the waterfall?" Sanji asked, lifting Luffy up with his free hand.

"Yep, the cool guy in trunks, the long-nosed fellow and the strange curly old man." The boy stood up and instantly rushed from the spot; two other men barely managed to keep up with him. Suddenly Zoro felt piercing pain in his ankles; the terrifying idea that his wounds could reopen reached his mind and he quickly rearranged his mind to distract himself from the disturbing thought.

"By the way, Luffy, can you tell us where you found a knife?" He asked; the pain was only increasing during his movement.

"Ace gave me it!" Luffy turned to him while in motion and smiled widely. "He said the knife was very important to keep, so I gripped it as tightly as I could!"

Both Sanji and Zoro mentally thanked Luffy's friend; in the end he did them an invaluable service, being already dead. But still Luffy's happy smile contradicted yesterday accident, so Sanji dared to ask, picking the words very carefully to not upset the boy.

"He's a good fellow, this Ace!" He smiled at Luffy cheerfully. "Friend of yours?"

"Brother." The slightest shadow of frustration appeared in his gaze, but he replaced it with joy in a flash. "Guys, we're here!"

Sanji and Zoro froze, staring at the unbelievable magnificent view. The waterfall originated from the stream about five meters higher from the ground; transparent cool water (it's coolness could be sensed even in distance) spilled down the rock, forming a small pond at it's base. Franky and Usopp were already enjoying the coolness of fresh water, splashing in the pond like excited children, and Brook was sitting in the water calmly and uninterested in their play; and three newcomers wasted no time in join them. At least Luffy, who jumped into the water with a happy yell, didn't even bothered to take his clothes off; Sanji just rolled up his pant legs and dunked only his shins into the pond since he still couldn't get his arm wet; Zoro in his turn dove his head into the water – he still felt aching of the wounds and didn't want to check their condition now. Everybody was pleased with their valuable find; when suddenly a woman's voice sounded from the side:

"Gentlemen, where is Tony? I can't find him anywhere; it seems Nami has an extremely high fever."

The men turned to her, and Usopp instantly got out from the water, looking at the raven haired woman with concern.

"What happened to her?" He gasped.

"Oh, I think she has some women's problems." Robin whispered to him evasively.

"Wait, you can't find Tony-bro?" Franky raised an eyebrow, glancing mistrustfully at Brook. "Hey, weren't you the one who was with him during the search?"

Brook lowered his head and coughed.

"Yes, he was with me for some time, but then…" He avoided everyone's eyes, which were starting to fill up with growing fury. "I don't know how it happened, he just escaped from my view; I didn't even have time to…"

Suddenly Luffy dashed to the tall man's side, breaking off his pitiful efforts to make an excuse and gave him one powerful punch to the face. Brook's goggles cracked and flew down from his face into the water. The tall man blinked several times; he was apparently shocked with the boy's action, even frightened. The others were overwhelmed as well: nobody had expected that from Luffy.

"You can't just leave your friend like that and peacefully swim here!" The boy yelled mightily at the man. "Go and find him now!"

* * *

Thuds to the door sounded almost impatiently; Zoro was finally awake, rubbing his sleepy eyes. Strange, he thought Perona would take the keys with her when she left, but maybe she simply forgot them. Still unfocused, the green haired man headed to the door and threw it open. A pink haired girl was standing at the doorway stamping her foot impatiently; but it wasn't Perona, to Zoro's surprise. The girl had incredibly vulgar makeup and a piercing below her right eye (_Why there of all places?_); her jaw was moving brokenly, apparently she was chewing gum. The strange girl glared at Zoro, made a bubble which burst right there, and then grumbled viciously:

"Who the fuck are you?"

* * *

**A/N:**

Greetings, readers! This chapter came out really long, I hope you enjoyed. There is a thing to clear: it could seem that island's recollection was Zoro's dream, and honestly I had this idea at first. But nope, if it was Zoro's dream, that means we aren't aware of Sanji's thoughts, which are important to know. Summarizing here we have not an actual flashback, more like backstory with switching POVs; the things will be like that from now on. Also I have some unpleasant news: I'll return to the university next week, thus updates will be done not so regurlary. As always big thanks to my precious beta xpiester333x for her hard work!


	5. Wings of God

After several hours of scurrying around the forest, they finally found Tony. The poor boy was sitting beneath a tree, his arms wrapped around his knees, and sobbing.

"Hey, Doc-bro!" Franky shouted as soon as they noticed the boy. Tony raised his head, red swollen eyes filled with surprise. He rushed to them immediately, running up to Robin, who spread her arms, ready to hug the boy.

"Guys, I thought I'd never see you again!" He sobbed loudly; the raven haired woman smiled at him, wiping off his tears.

"It's alright, mister Doctor, calm down." She said calmly.

"I don't think everything is alright." Zoro turned to Brook, his arms crossed on his chest. "You fucker, don't you want to apologize?" He hissed abruptly.

Everybody looked at the tall man now. He tried to avoid their gazes, but then realized it was impossible to escape the punishment, and thought the best thing to do now was to laugh it off.

"At least we found him alive, so why all this anger?" Brook's face broke into an unconfident grin.

Zoro was ready to kill him. This cocksure bastard had pissed him off from the very beginning, but this pitiful excuse was the last straw. The green haired man dashed for Brook in a flash and grabbed him tightly by the collar.

"I said apologize!" He shouted at the man, his eyes flickering with a flaming rage. Zoro only regretted that he didn't have his katanas with him; if only they were here, he'd deal with this jerk in one sharp movement, cutting his head off. _Fresh and warm blood all over his hands. Accurate line of raw flesh._ The tall man's eyes were full of dread, he mumbled something inarticulate; by all appearances he only wished this insane wildman would release him from his rough grip.

Zoro glared at the man without blinking. His eyes were starting to pulse with blood, and familiar heat was already spreading throughout his body, when suddenly he felt gentle hand on his shoulder.

"Zoro, calm down." Sanji uttered quietly. "It's not the best way to make somebody apologize."

The swordsman weakened his grip, feeling a strange stupor; his head went dizzy and cloudy. What was he doing? He wanted to kill Brook without any doubt, the thought that it could be a bad idea never reached his muted mind. Zoro finally released the man's collar and pushed him away slightly. Brook straightened, still panting. Tony came closer to the tall man, his eyes on his feet, and spoke first.

"Brook, it's not your fault, I was too unfocused when we were searching for Luffy. I noticed some plants and decided to check if they were edible, and then realized you were already gone. So you don't need to apologize at all."

"No." The tall man finally looked into the boy's eyes. "Even if so, I was careless as well. I just thought everyone for themselves here; I forgot you're still young and need help. I'm sorry."

Tony smiled softly at the man, making it clear that apology was accepted. Luffy, who didn't interfere during the whole conversation, finally spoke with a calm and confident voice.

"You're right only in half, Brook."

Everybody slid their gazes to the boy.

"It's true that Tony needed help. But he isn't the only one. Every one of us must take care of each other, otherwise we won't be able to survive here."

It was an obvious truth; nevertheless everybody sensed so much confidence in Luffy's statement, that it made them believe it would be the most important rule from now on. Everyone smiled softly, Franky even clapped Luffy's shoulder, expressing his recognition and trust to the younger man.

"Tony, Nami has a high fever, we need to hurry." Robin turned to the boy. His eyes widened and he swallowed nervously.

"Fever? Oh god, that isn't good… Almost all the pills in my kit got wet."

"We'll think of something." She answered quietly. She probably had no idea what to do either, but it was impossible to loiter any longer.

The whole group was on their way to the camp. When Robin came to the waterfall and told them about Nami's condition earlier, Usopp went there to look after her. Yet Sanji was worried: considering the morning scene, things could get even worse if the long-nosed guy would stay by her side. The blonde lit up the half-smoked cigarette, promising himself one deep and another little drag.

Though Nami wasn't the only one about whom the cook was worried. Back then, when Zoro shouted at Brook, Sanji noticed a strange hint in the swordsman's behavior. The thing was, it hadn't been just simple anger. Every of them were angry about the singer's action of course, but Zoro was another story. It was obviously the case when his swordsman's flair increased; the aura of terror and fury proceeded from the man, when he glared at Brook like the man was his _prey. _Zoro looked really frightening, but at the same time Sanji caught himself on the thought that the green haired man reminded him of a Scandinavian warrior god, mighty and powerful. _It would be really interesting to fight with him someday._

He glanced at Zoro, who was walking next to him. The swordsman was silent all the time since Sanji had told him to release Brook, and now he looked somewhat disoriented. His eyes were absolutely unfocused, even muted; the cook noticed his walk was lame, like he walked on autopilot.

"Are you alright, Marimo?" Sanji asked with a hint of concern in his tone.

Zoro barely understood he had been spoken to. After his outburst he felt dizzier with every passing minute; his gut turned cold, causing the feeling of slight nausea. But the worst thing was the soaked feeling in his boots: now it was clear his wounds had reopened. In a different situation he'd probably tell Tony about this, but now Nami's condition was the first priority.

"I'm alright." Zoro's throat released a dry hoarse; in the next moment his eyes hazed with darkness, the noise in his ears killed any other sounds around, his legs betrayed him and he fell unconscious. Sanji gasped; he barely managed to catch the falling man with his only operational arm.

"Damn, Zoro, wake up!" He shook the man's shoulder, but the answer never of the corner of his eye Sanji noticed the rest of the group coming closer to them, but he was more focused on the green haired man's boots, covered in blood. "Shit!"

"What happened?!" Tony blurted, his eyes wide open.

"Look." The blond man pointed to Zoro's ankles with his eyes. "His wounds reopened."

"Damn it, no!" Tony shook his head in disbelief and anxiety. "I knew it! He was too careless!"

Franky leaned to them, taking Zoro's senseless body from Sanji and placing it on his shoulder.

"There is no time for shouting, Tony-bro, let's hurry." He uttered confidently and ran faster in the camp's direction.

In a dozen minutes they reached the area; the first thing that everyone noticed, unfortunately, was the died out fire.

"Shit, shit!" Sanji jumped up to the overhang, pulling the lighter from his pocket. "Somebody, bring more branches!"

The next several hours were full of total turmoil. Tony tried to deal with Nami's fever and Zoro's wounds at the same time; Robin helped him, bringing some water from the pond to wet Nami's forehead and helped to make bandages for Zoro. Franky and Sanji were struggling with the fire, which was hard to light up again. Usopp dashed to the shore several times, he was obviously in panic, yet tried to find some possible items floated in by the waves. Only Brook and Luffy sat silently at the sand.

"Brook, I'm hungry." Luffy whined, pouting his lips.

"We're all hungry, please wait a little." The tall man sighed. "I don't think it will be over soon."

"What are you talking about, you two?" Franky shouted at them. "Go help Usopp find something! And I think we already found everything on the shore, so you better dive into the water!"

"I can't swim." Luffy blurted.

"Really?" Sanji raised an eyebrow. "Man, it's the first time I hear somebody can't swim at your age."

Luffy simply shrugged.

"But I can search in the shallows."

"So go already!" Franky commanded. Both men stood up and wandered off towards the forest; soon they disappeared from view.

When finally the fire was done, the divers returned with their finds, and the patients were treated and sleeping in the shelter, Sanji wiped the sweat from his forehead and started to cook dinner. It was already pretty late; the bloody sun was descending below the horizon quickly. Everyone was exhausted and starving after this stressful day full of nervous accidents.

The entire group, excluding Zoro and Nami, was sitting around the fire, staring at the boiling mussels in the pot with empty eyes. Sanji lit up his cigarette, feeling guilty he broke his promise: this one drag would be excess for today. But he was badly concerned about his sick and injured friends. Well, he never would admit it out loud, but he was more worried about the marimo's state, since the redhead had a pretty generic illness (not even an illness at all, her fever was probably caused by her period). Zoro in his turn suffered a big thing. When Tony finally returned from the shelter, he said Zoro had lost large amount of blood, so it could take some time for him to come to his senses. It seemed his wounds had reopened even before they found the doctor; which meant he had been moving with bleeding ankles for several hours. Also the doc mentioned the scars probably would never disappear, because he had to sew it two times.

Sanji looked into space unfocused,he slowly stirred the boiling broth with a wooden spatula Franky had managed to make him just a moment ago. He prepared several sturdy leaves to put the mussels into since they didn't have any other utensils. The divers found some really valuable items under water, there were two backpacks remaining after the crash. The contents included some warm clothes which were now spread out on the rocks to dry, some hygiene items: four toothbrushes, two razors and a soap in a plastic case. Not to mention the backpacks themselves were very useful to carry food and other finds. There was also a book; Robin instantly grabbed it with pleased smile; it was wet as well, yet still possible to read even if the paper was inflated and the letters were blurry. Also the paper apparently could have another use which they could come up with later.

The dinner was finally ready, and everyone pounced on it hungrily.

"At least it's better than yesterday's crab." Brook said with his mouth full. "It made me really thirsty; I could barely fall asleep because of it."

Sanji frowned at him a little, but decided not to answer. He knew perfectly well yesterday's dish was awful; it really disappointed him back then. The blonde chef used to cook delicious meals in the restaurant and at home, and everyone who tried it always praised his high skill. So it was somewhat painful to admit he couldn't help but serve an unappetizing dish.

"Leave some food for Zoro and miss Nami." The cook said quietly, observing the dining group. He himself had no appetite and ate only a couple of mussels (they weren't tasty as well, but at least edible enough) only to fill his starving stomach. Energy is needed to survive – Sanji knew it perfectly, but still he missed delicious food. If only he could feed his friends properly.

"So." Franky spoke as soon as everyone finished the meal. "Since Zoro-bro is sick today, somebody should replace him on the watch."

"I can." Sanji answered.

The carpenter hesitated for a moment: the blonde looked really bad, he had a dark bag below his one visible eye and all his appearance showed absolute exhaustion.

"The night watch?" Luffy asked.

"Oh, you were asleep yesterday when we distributed the order." The blue haired man scratched his chin. "Wanna be on the shift?"

The boy nodded with a wide excited grin.

"Okay then, you will be on watch from five to seven. Sanji-bro, you're really better to rest tonight." Franky turned to the cook, who simply shrugged in reply.

"And what about exploring the island?" Robin turned to the carpenter.

"The island?" Luffy cocked his head to the side. "Why do you guys think it's an island?"

Everybody froze. Really, why did they think so? This place could be a peninsula or even a part of an archipelago as well, and for some reason nobody thought about this possibility.

"As I recall, Nami said it's an island yesterday." Usopp explained. "Her profession is tied up with maps, so I believed her words without a doubt."

"What if she simply mistook?" The raven haired woman suggested. "Just said the first thing that came to mind; we all were in shock after all."

"Well, that makes sense." The long-nosed guy nodded.

Franky pressed his fingers to the temples, pondering.

"I think it's better to go explore the whole shore properly tomorrow." He finally uttered.

"So, that means we will have an adventure!" Luffy exclaimed, his eyes shining with pure enthusiasm.

"Adventure, you said…" Sanji scowled. It seemed the boy didn't think about all the troubles that could occur during the journey; nobody was aware of the shoreline's length aftel all, and it could take a long time to walk around. "What if you won't be able to return?" He finally uttered the idea that probably disturbed everyone.

"You have a point." Usopp agreed. "We need to collect fresh water if we're going around the whole island… if it's an island." He added timidly.

"Yes, and the only container we have for it is this pot." Robin said wistfully, rubbing her chin.

Everybody pondered in silence, and only Luffy remained carefree, whistling some cheerful tune.

"I'll try to make something with wood." The carpenter spoke. "After all we have no choice, what if this place really isn't uninhabited? That means we have a chance to get out of here, and we can't lose it!"

The blue haired man's words sounded right; some little problems couldn't prevent their salvation, so everybody agreed and decided to part into two groups. The first group, The Explorers (Luffy insisted to title the groups so badly), would start their moving first thing tomorrow morning, both backpacks with them. The second group, The Remainders (Brook joked 'The Injured', but Robin gave him a skeptic glance and he cut his speech instantly), would stay in the camp and wait for The Explorers; the knife would be kept with them. Luffy, Franky, Brook and Usopp (the long-nosed guy suggested his candidature himself, thus everybody was a little surprised) belonged to the first group; none of them were injured and they all could cope with a possibly lingering hike. The women, Sanji, Zoro and Tony were chosen to stay here. The cook wasn't really pleased with his role; it gave him the thought that he's weak and useless with his broken arm, though Robin noticed his scowl and said they couldn't stay here without his cooking skill. That made Sanji a little more confident; nevertheless he thought Zoro would be greatly disgruntled that he was included into the 'weak' group.

The night was even colder than yesterday. Since they had some warm clothing it might have seemed that it wasn't a problem anymore; still there were only three sweaters, which were lent to the women and the injured swordsman. At first Robin suggested that Tony wear one of them, but the doctor rejected it, saying bare-chested Zoro needed the warmth more than he did. Thus everyone fell asleep rather fast after all the stress they experienced that day. Sanji stayed awake for a bit, lying next to the peacefully snoring Tony. The marimo laid on the other side of the little doc, and the blonde noticed his forehead was twitching with deep creases; probably he had a nightmare.

* * *

The next morning The Explorers left at the break of dawn. During his nightshift Franky managed to carve a wooden flask. "_What a talented carpenter he is."_ Sanji thought. They left without waiting for breakfast, assuring the cook they would grab something on the walk. The Remainders collected some plants and potherbs, then Sanji added them to yesterday's mussels and prepared a modest breakfast. Fortunately this dish was rather good and spread a pleasant smell during the boiling; by all appearances it was an effect of the spicy plants.

Nami came out from the shelter; her eyes sleepy and body shivering a little; she moved closer to the fire and sat near Sanji, looking into the pot with a weak interest.

"Good morning, miss Nami." The chef smiled at her softly, and she smiled back. Her face was swollen and pale; thereby Sanji thought she needed to eat a large portion.

"Good morning, Sanji. Where is Robin and everybody else?" She yawned.

"Oh, I forgot you are still not aware of the yesterday's talk." He put a portion on a leaf and passed it to her. "Luffy, Franky, Brook and Usopp went to go round the island."

Nami raised an eyebrow; a hint of worry displayed in her eyes, but it was instantly replaced with annoyance.

"That idiot went with those guys?" She asked.

"You mean Usopp?"

"Yep." She chewed the food carefully. "Hm, this tastes good!"

Sanji couldn't help but break into a wide smile: finally he was able to cater to someone with food.

"I'm happy you like it. How are you by the way?" He wondered carefully.

"Oh, I've been better." Nami rolled her eyes, but then chuckled pleasantly. "But enough of my whining, where are Robin and Tony, if they didn't go with others? And," she frowned a little, "what's with Zoro? I'm a bit surprised he is still sleeping there in the shelter."

Sanji took a deep breath and told her about all the events she missed yesterday, and that Robin and Tony went to search for a type of mold, which the doc needed to make some medicine.

"It's very good news that you found a waterfall." The red haired girl said. "Not to mention it's a source of fresh water, we can also climb to its vertex and observe this place from the top. I used to work as a meteorologist and have some knowledge in geography." She explained. "Thus I'll be able to figure out if there are any trade routes."

She finished eating her portion and raised an impromptu plate to the blond cook, implying she wanted extras. Sanji nodded and added some more food on the leaf.

"But this situation with Brook is rather nasty." Nami scowled. "I didn't like his behavior even back then when he made poor Tony upset."

"You know, I think he isn't a bad guy after all." Sanji shrugged. "We're all stressed here, so it isn't a surprise that some impulsive outbursts could appear."

"Maybe you're right." She sighed tiredly. "At least I hope so. And I'm sorry for Zoro, poor guy." She lowered her gaze and pouted. "He seems to be so strong, but with these wounds he isn't mobile."

For some reason Nami's definition of Zoro as a 'poor guy' devastated Sanji. If the swordsman would hear her words, it would probably make a severe shot to his pride. Nevertheless the cook left her statement without a comment; apparently Nami didn't realize she said something that could offend Zoro, she just wanted to express her regrets.

"Oh, Nami, you're awake." Robin's voice sounded from the side. Both the cook and the read haired girl turned at her; the woman was alone.

"Yes, I am, but where is Tony?" Nami asked worryingly.

"The doctor decided to stay by himself." Robin answered calmly. "I asked if he will be safe on his own, and he replied there is no need to worry." She bit her lower lip wistfully and added: "Probably after yesterday's situation he figured that he should become more independent."

"Seems so." Nami turned to the black haired woman. "Robin, can you please walk me to the waterfall you found?"

"Oh, mister Chef already told you about it." She acted like Sanji wasn't there right before her eyes. What a strange manner of speaking this woman had, calling everybody in the third person even if the spoken individual was near. "Alright, let's go then."

Both women stood up, heading to the inland forest; Robin supported Nami on her halting walk, holding the younger woman by her shoulders. "_It's so troublesome to be a woman." _Sanji thought, chewing the food wistfully. He wondered if Nami was a good wife and what on Earth made her decide to marry Usopp in the first place. The red haired girl was very attractive, even in her current state her beauty didn't grow dim. Usopp was probably a good guy; still Sanji couldn't understand why she chose him.

Rustle arose inside the shelter, it seemed Zoro finally came to his senses. The blonde hurried to the housing to help the man since he wasn't able to move properly (even if he himself wasn't aware of it); a bunch of harsh curses reached the cook's ears when he entered the shelter.

"The fuck, so my wounds reopened?" Zoro asked hoarsely, trying to stand up. Sanji extended his free arm to him, but the swordsman only hissed. "Damn, one-armed cook, don't make all this shit even more awful."

He got up on his knees, thinking of what he could do further. His ankles throbbed painfully; there was no way he could stand on his feet.

"Tony re-stitched your wounds." The blonde explained quietly. "He was pissed off as well, you were an idiot to run with such injuries."

Zoro sighed heavily, grabbing Sanji's still raised arm, leaning to his body carefully. He hated to rely on others, especially when it was physical force. Both men got out from the shelter; Sanji put Zoro down to sit near the fire.

"What a shame." The green haired man scowled, hiding his eyes under his palm.

"Cut the crap, Marimo." The cook gave him the leaf. "Here, eat this. Miss Nami said it isn't that bad."

Zoro's expression changed quickly, he gratefully grabbed the 'plate', swallowing its content almost without chewing.

"Don't choke, moron." Sanji rolled his eyes; but actually he was pleased to see somebody eat his food with such relish.

"Where are the others?" Zoro asked with his mouth full.

"Went to get around the whole coastline. Yesterday we thought maybe it's not an island at all, so confirmation is needed."

Zoro simply nodded as if the cook's words weren't a great discovery for him; he was too busy guzzling down the meal. Sanji lit up a cigarette and inhaled, filling his lungs with bitter smoke completely. The tobacco was crackling with pleasant, barely audible sound, which the cook had never paid much attention to earlier. The cool breeze proceeded from the side of the ocean, but it wasn't as cold as at night anymore. Zoro finished his meal and took off the sweater Tony had put on him yesterday when he was unconscious, exposing the huge scar on his muscular chest.

"What is this?" He wondered, looking at the clothing in his hands.

"Oh, the guys found some items yesterday." Sanji took the second long deep drag. "Including some clothes, toothbrushes and razors."

"Hm, these are really useful." The swordsman nodded, reaching out his arms and yawning.

"Zoro, how did you get that scar?"

Finally the cook asked the question that bothered him since Zoro took off his shirt for the first time and his scar was exposed.

"How, you're asking…"

The green haired man closed his eyes wistfully. He wasn't sure if it was safe to tell. Back then, in the town, he used to attend kendo classes, where he trained with a wooden sword.

Once, after the training, Zoro's sensei asked him if he was interested in _real_ practice. Dracule Mihawk - that was the teacher's name - spotted his disciple's great potential and couldn't let it go to waste. Zoro agreed without a doubt, and what was his shock when he figured out what 'real practice' meant in reality. There were underground night meetings at the 'Thriller Bark' club, where he and Perona began to work later, trying to fix their college money problems.

Fighters' routes there included swordsmen besides the others. Sword battles were played with an amount of rules; the main one stated that the fight was over when one of the opponents got the first scratch. It went without speaking that everybody must remain alive, otherwise the club owner, Gecko Moriah, Mihawk's mate, will have big problems with the police.

A couple of initial fights Zoro sparred with newbies that Mihawk selected for him; his sensei wasn't aware that Zoro had more experience since he was trained by the famous (in narrower circles) sword master Koshiro back in his childhood; he even owned a katana his great uncle gifted him – it was a graceful blade with a beige scabbard, Wado Ichimonji. Zoro valued this sword as his greatest treasure, and Mihawk was impressed when saw him fighting with the katana for the first time.

Of course these rookies didn't cause any trouble for Zoro and he easily defeated all of them. Then he asked Mihawk to spar with him, nevertheless his sensei only laughed at his words. _"You're young and raw, Roronoa; your spiritual power is still sealed" _– the older swordsman rejected Zoro's plea. But the green haired man was assiduous; he wanted to face Mihawk on the ring so desperately that his passionate desire wreaked havoc within him.

Noting his disciple's indestructible zeal, sensei finally agreed, though still reluctantly. Nevertheless their fight ended brusquely and caused Zoro a long cut across his chest. The wound wasn't deep; Mihawk tried to be accurate, and this action pissed the green haired man off a lot. _"Why are you holding back?!" _He shouted at his teacher._ "I know you're much stronger! Don't underestimate me, someday I'll defeat you!" _Mihawk only smirked at him.

The next moment Zoro fainted. The club's doctor, Law, sewed his wound right there: it was dangerous for the Moriah's reputation to send any person with such suspicious wounds to the hospital. That was why he hired Law in the first place. The man lost his doctor license, but there was no other choice for the fighters. Law's skill wasn't the best though, so the ugly scar remained on Zoro's body forever, adorning his mighty chest.

After that accident Mihawk gave Zoro two precious katanas. _"Keep them, Roronoa. This one is Sandai Kitetsu, and the other is Shuisui. I remembered the words you said to me, so I'll be waiting for when your spirit will become stronger". _

It wasn't that Zoro didn't want to tell about his illegal activities to Sanji. He felt he could trust this man, yet the swordsman found this story pretty shameful to tell anybody; his weakness could become obvious then. So he confined to a short explanation.

"This is a reminder that I have to beat one man." He simply uttered.

Sanji's one visible eye widened; he barely could keep in the admiration Zoro's words caused. "_This man obviously has a history." _However he decided to be polite and didn't ask further questions; by all appearances it was a matter of the swordsman's pride.

* * *

The Explorers, to everyone's surprise, returned in just two days with bad news. This place turned out to be an island after all; they went around the whole coastline and nothing gave a hint of population density here: no housings, not even any noise that could belong to humans. And the most disappointing fact was that no other islands were visible on the horizon, which meant this island wasn't a part of any archipelago.

Nami, having climbed the waterfall rock and trying to figure out the location of the land, ended up overwhelmed: there wasn't a clue to understand if any trade routes could pass there. Thereby the reunited group plunged into annoying tension: their hope for salvation was melting right before their eyes. There was no need to say they all were frustrated in various degrees: someone, like Robin, Zoro and Franky, didn't show their concern just to drew the attention of the rest to their common problems like food and housing. The carpenter, who managed to create an axe with a sharp stone he found on the way around the island, made the second shelter for the ladies to provide them a little more comfort. The hovel was sturdier this time, but smaller than the first one; Nami and Robin were grateful for his service and appreciated it a lot. Still they didn't look satisfied completely, especially Nami.

Tony, Usopp and Brook in their turn were the ones who were on edge, and if the singer was more likely irritated with discomfort and the entire idea that they could end their lives here, the long-nosed guy and the little doc were crying all the time. Tony most of all; the poor boy barely was doing something more than just sleeping and whining; he even refused to eat, which drove Sanji absolutely crazy. The cook couldn't understand why everyone gave up so easily, even to the point when somebody would reject food. He continued to cook for everyone nevertheless; and sometimes, with nasty shouts or with tender words, he was able to feed the boy at least one time per day. Though the whole atmosphere of sorrow and mortification had its treacherous effect on the blonde's mind as well. He tried to stay cool and calm as much as it was possible, allowing himself little rage outbursts somewhere far from the camp.

When three weeks after the crash had passed, Tony finally removed Sanji's bandage. His arm was numb and senseless; his fingers unbent with vexing tingling. But at least Sanji could finally prepare food with both his hands. Yet it wasn't a relief for the cook; their supplies were still poor and his dishes continued to come out unsavory. Not to mention it wasn't the last problem that bothered him: he had _only _six cigarettes left after just three weeks, and god knew with what he could substitute his sedative. The single thought of running out of his precious drugs soon drove Sanji insane. He tried to distract himself from this trouble, concentrating on the others to block the annoying concern at least temporally. And there was another problem that bothered him.

Since the girls had their own shelter, the men's housing wasn't so narrow to sleep in. However, almost always Sanji slept next to Zoro, who was a pretty uneasy sleeper. The blonde could never fall asleep immediately, but the swordsman could; still his sleep was absolutely restless. Many times Sanji noticed the other man's deep scowl; not to mention he was trembling during his sleep, his legs kept jerking unconsciously. Sometimes he mumbled barely articulate noises, in which words rarely could be recognized. The green haired man continued to repeat:_ "No", "Why", "She", "Young"_ from time to time, and his tone was desperate, like he was praying to invisible somebody. Sanji couldn't help being curious about what nightmares his friend saw every night, who was too young for something and why and who the swordsman was begging.

Thus, it was another cold early morning, when Sanji was awakened by abrupt movement from the side. With muted vision of his one eye he noticed Zoro stood up and left the shelter; probably it was time for his shift (his wounds still weren't healed completely, but he finally could move, so he returned to the night watch order). The blonde rubbed his eyes, feeling his face was swollen and numb after sleep. He continued lying just in case he'd be able to fall asleep again; still his body was too heavy and his head ached steadily. Thereby, the cook sat up on the underlay. Everyone was snoring peacefully, at least Luffy, Franky and Brook; Usopp had just returned from his shift and joined the snoring as soon as his head touched the floor; Tony in his turn was shivering a bit, moaning slightly in his unquiet sleep. The light-gray light proceeded through the shelter's entrance; the first sunrays ruptured the thick fog.

Sanji left the housing and went to the fire's overhang, where sleepy swordsman was already training with a bamboo stick. Zoro used to brandish it the entire time he was still unmovable, and the cook erroneously thought he was just distracting himself that way. Though it was halfway truth: Zoro was training all the time back in the town, using every opportunity and free minute to improve his skills. "_I have to be stronger."_ He mentally ingeminated. "_I'm still weak. I don't deserve Mihawk as my opponent while I'm weak." _Nonetheless, the green haired swordsman wasn't thinking about Mihawk now, reaching his wooden 'sword' to the air. He dreamed about Kuina. Again. Zoro was literally sick of nightmares related to his childhood friend already; they used to pursue him very often in the past. And for several last years, when he thought he'd already break free from these memories and the bitterness tied up with them, suddenly the route of terrorizing dreams resumed. It began right after his wounds reopened; he was in a fogged delirium, and Kuina's little body seemed too real, as if he could reach his hand and feel her coldness.

Now though, his brooding was interrupted with the blond cook's appearance. Sanji sat near him (Zoro noticed really deep dark bags below the man's light eyes), lighting up his cigarette.

"It's not your shift now, dumbass, why are you up?" The swordsman wondered without breaking the stick's sharp movements through the air.

"You woke me up." The blonde said, exhaling the smoke through his nose.

"You could just return to sleep." Zoro shrugged.

Sanji was quiet for a couple of minutes, watching the swordsman's practice carefully. Zoro stubbornly avoided the sweater Tony insisted him to wear, preferring to go bare-chested. Thus, Sanji could observe the man's muscles shifting with his arm's acute movements. "_I need to ask him finally."_ The blonde inhaled deeply, pleasant shiver swept over his body.

"Zoro." The cook uttered quietly. "What nightmares do you have every night?"

Sanji's words caught the swordsman off guard; he turned to the man, overwhelmed. How did the cook even know? Could it be Zoro had been sleep talking? Yet that was the first thing, the second thing on his mind was why Sanji was even interested in it.

"It's none of your business." The green haired man said harshly. Maybe too harshly for such a simple and innocent question.

"Maybe it's not," the blonde scratched his hairy chin, "but still, I want to know what's bothering you so much that you can't sleep in peace."

The swordsman closed his eyes wistfully, lowering his stick. No, he couldn't confess now. Even if he wanted to, for some reason he didn't feel he had enough courage for it. Strange, but for some reason usually calm and confident Zoro couldn't even say a couple of words, simple words. _Remember the girl I was talking about, Sanji? That is, I used to have nightmares about her all the time. Because I loved her. Because she was too young to die. Because it's unfair! Fortune is the cruelest enemy in the world, and the worst thing is that you can't defeat it. _Zoro repeated this inner monologue a couple of times in his head, trying to force the words out of his throat. It wasn't a bad thing to tell Sanji about this, right? After all, the cook was really friendly with him, and even if Zoro could think such confession could look like showing his weakness, his still unhealed wounds, his reopened scars… No, in the end he couldn't.

"So." The blonde interrupted the prolonged silence between them, taking the last drag from his cigarette. "If you don't want to…"

But then his still poorly movable hand betrayed him viciously: his fingers flinched and his precious cigarette fell down right into the fire.

"The hell!" Sanji cursed loudly. "No, no!"

He raised his fingers to the fire with a pointless effort to get his halfway burned cigarette back, but Zoro stopped him sharply by the shoot of his wooden sword.

"Idiot, you'll burn your hand."

"I don't care!" The cook shouted desperately. "I have only _five _now! Damn it!"

Sanji jumped up and rushed to the shore, fury in his eyes. Zoro sighed deeply, slowly getting up. _"What an idiot, trying to focus on everyone's problems, when he still can't handle his own." _The green haired man smiled slightly at this thought. Sanji really was an observant man. He tried to do his best and cooked for the rest of the group, never complained and of course never asked somebody to replace him, even when his hand wasn't capable. And now he was absolutely helpless with these stupid cigarettes; who could even presume such a trifle would wipe out his usually cold mind? Or maybe Zoro was wrong and Sanji never was cold-minded, just pretending so not to cause unnecessary anxiety, which everybody had enough already?

Indeed he was broken. Zoro walked closer to the furious man, who was sending sharp powerful kicks to the rock on the shore.

"Calm down, idiot." The swordsman uttered, his hands in his pockets.

"Disappear!" The blonde roared, glaring at him sullenly. "I don't need you comforting me here, so go away!"

"Stupid cook." Zoro came to grips with him, and suddenly Sanji felt a rough hit under his ribs. The cook coughed, trying to understand what had just happened. His eyes widened when the realization hit him: the punch came out from no one but Zoro.

"What the fuck are you doing?!"

Before Sanji could think about anything, his leg already sent a kick to the swordsman's side. Overwhelmed, he realized that Zoro had caught his foot in the air and now was grinning widely.

"Capoeira?" He raised an eyebrow, still wearing that cocksure smirk.

And the comprehension finally caught Sanji: _t__he swordsman provoked him to the battle. _The man's expression was similar to that Sanji had seen weeks ago, when Zoro lashed out at Brook in the forest. But there was a solid distinction: while Zoro never considered Brook as his opponent, he wanted Sanji to fight him on an equal footing; that's why he was grinning so devilishly. As soon as the blonde figured out his assailant's plan, he himself broke into conceited grin and rushed, fetching away from the strong man's grip.

The blond man backflipped, now pressing his uninjured palm to the sand and staying upside down. He focused on the swordsman's forearms; by all appearances he would block Sanji's kicks. The blonde jumped sharply, rushing forward to the opponent, sending a blow to his abdomen area, but Zoro managed to block it with his elbows. Sanji straightened, ready to give another powerful kick, but Zoro outstripped him, passing a mighty strike with the flank of his arm. Though the cook abruptly caught the hit with his shin, the encounter caused a burning tweaking for both men. Still, it was a satisfying sensation.

They grinned at each other, and the next moment Sanji sent another intense shot, almost hitting Zoro's jaw. The green haired man blocked again, nevertheless it was _really hard _to dodge blonde's attacks.

_"__This man is strong."_ Zoro thought, observing Sanji's raising leg. All his movements were graceful and elegant, but still sharp, indicating their owner's emotional nature. Zoro couldn't help but feel delighted by Sanji's gorgeous fighting style, it really was something special. The green haired man usually faced swordsmen on the ring; still he had to admit that different fighting styles had always drawn his attention and he often watched other fights in the club. And Sanji's one was a rarity; he had never seen anything similar before. He knew capoeira includes leg movements most of all, but it isn't a pure battle style; so Sanji's manner was a mix of different styles and motions, as Zoro could figure out from the ongoing scramble. It was impossible how Sanji could spread his legs so easily in a full twine, twist his body down on his hands and then jump up again, sending a floaty kick. Zoro's face broke into a pleased smile when the cook finally caught him in a tight grip, his hips over the other man's torso. They fell on the sand; Zoro's back scratched slightly from the contact with the ground. Sanji was panting, his eyes flickering with excitement. The raising sun pierced his hair; it was dazzling with a light shade of both gold and silver.

"I won." Sanji chuckled and then smiled openly at his opponent.

And then something clicked within Zoro's mind.

_"I won!" The girl exclaimed cheerfully, looking down at Zoro. Her legs were wrapped around his narrow torso, the boy's back pressed to the snow._

_"You were cheating!"_ _He pretended to be offended; still he couldn't hold back laughter, looking at his happy friend from below._

_"Zoro, you're stupid!" Kuina pointed her little finger to his chest. "It doesn't matter since I defeated you!"_

_"You just caught me in a grip!" He pouted. _

_"Haha, but I won!" Kuina burst out laughing, standing up from Zoro's little body and shaking off. She offered him a hand, but the boy rejected her help with a nasty grimace._

Sanji eased up his grip and rolled off to the side, sitting up on the sand. Zoro remained lying, his arms spreaded widely.

"You're damn good, Cook." He uttered with a grin.

"Oh, you too, shitty Marimo." The blonde smirked, scratching his neck. "If only you had your sword here."

The green haired man chuckled softly.

"Where did you study capoeira? It's fucking rare, I've seen it only once."

"Oh, that." Sanji smiled weakly. "My old man taught me some movements many years ago. He was really good at it back then, but for some reason I never asked where he had learned it."

They sat in silence for some time, observing the brightening welkin peacefully.

"You know, Cook, I think we'll find something for you to smoke. I mean, wild tobacco grows everywhere, and Franky can make you a pipe or something."

Sanji raised an eyebrow and nodded in agreement.

"You have a point, moss-head." He lowered his gaze and added quietly: "Sorry, I was an ass."

"Ha, are you really sorry?" Zoro sat up, looking into Sanji's visible eye: it was deep blue now. "Just don't pretend to be cool, idiot. We are all frazzled here, and nothing can be hidden from others. Don't save up your rage, otherwise you'll just burst out like you did just now."

The cook smiled at the swordsman, hiding his glance. Zoro was right; he probably didn't even know how much he was right. Sanji had always hidden his feelings, because he knew people didn't want to deal with problems of others. Even if it were his friends. But Zoro was different. For some reason Sanji felt their fast-building friendship was more valuable than all his previous relationships. It was strange, and maybe it was just an effect of the entire situation, but deep in his heart Sanji didn't really care. He knew he could trust the swordsman with his life; and now, after their fight, he was assured even more.

The thing was, did Zoro have the same trust in him? He didn't want to talk about his nightmares. The cook had no idea why the green haired man refused, but now sudden realization hit him: _h__e was hiding something himself. _He pretended to be calm. Though it was for everyone's sake and Sanji didn't think it was important, but Zoro's words make him ponder. Maybe Zoro didn't understand he was hiding something important too? Nevertheless, Sanji decided not to bother him with this question anymore.

_I trust this man. I know he'll tell everything when he understands. We all need to figure everything out here. We have a rare chance to think over our lives. That's a Fortune's trial._

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**A/N:**

Hello, readers! This chapter was kinda hard for me to write... Okay, really hard. Though I hope you enjoyed! Thanks for all your reviews, favs and follows, I really appreciate! And thanks to Caitlin for her help as always :)


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